Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 323 Respective means

The desolate wilderness, devoid of any lights for miles around, was swept by a cold wind that obscured all vision.

The siren flashed silently with red and blue light, reflecting Lei Hanqin's ever-changing expression.

He desperately wanted to continue tracking the suspect's vehicle, not wanting to watch the suspect escape. After all, previous roadside camera footage showed that the police car had come within a mere kilometer of the suspect vehicle at its closest point.

But... the most important part of the "People's Police" is the word "People's".

Whether it's narcotics police, criminal investigation police, or even logistics police, when they discover that someone's life may be threatened, providing immediate and unwavering assistance is a mandatory duty for the police, without any room for negotiation.

If this were in the city, it would be fine; after a while, someone could be found to fill in. But this was in the suburbs, and there wasn't a police station for miles around, so Lei Hanqin and his group had to do it themselves.

"Captain, it really was a vehicle that crashed. It was a small van, and it's completely mangled."

Clinging to the slippery rocks and snow-covered steps halfway up the mountain, one of the policemen leaned precariously against the rocks behind him. Holding a flashlight in one hand and a clump of tenacious reeds in the other, he spoke into his walkie-talkie: “Visibility is terrible. We can’t confirm if there are any survivors yet. But it’s certain someone is dead; I can vaguely see bloodstains and dismembered limbs. Besides, this is the only way we can go; it’s not a proper way down. And the wind is very strong where I am, with no footholds. A slight misstep and I could easily fall. And I feel the wind is getting stronger; without any support, I can’t stand up!”

"Please be careful first! Once you're sure there's no road over there, then come up here."

Lei Hanqin, expressionless, instructed his team members, then continued, "Old He, how's the situation over there? Have you found a way down the bridge?"

"They're going further and further away!"

A loud, static-filled voice came through the walkie-talkie: "Without a local to guide us, we can't find our exact location at all. I even suspect we didn't come from this side; we might need to find one of those winding, narrow paths."

"Then let's find some locals nearby!"

Lei Hanqin was resolute. Even though snowflakes had already covered him in a white film, he remained standing motionless and said, "We must find out the situation of that car down there, no conditions! Brothers, Zhao Zhigao might be inside that car, perhaps even waiting for our rescue! What's a little snow? What's a little difficult road? Even if we have to crawl or roll, we must get down there as fast as we can to rescue him!"

"Zhao Zhigao? How could that be..."

Everyone in the channel was stunned for a moment.

Lei Hanqin continued expressionlessly, "I just checked. The van didn't fall accidentally. Next to the skid marks and skid tire tracks, there's a row of shoe prints. Judging from the van's length and the position of the shoe prints, it's highly likely the driver who jumped out. That guy not only jumped out, but even lay on the ground for a while until a wide-wheelbase SUV took him away. In other words, this is a murder! And the SUV that took the driver away..."

"It's very likely the car we've been tracking!"

The policeman surnamed He's voice turned serious. As the only veteran officer to respond to Lei Hanqin's explanation, he said in a deep voice, "I understand! We do need to consider the possibility of murder to silence him! Although I don't quite believe that Zhao Zhigao would be so stupid as to be silenced, even if there is only one survivor, he could provide clues for us to solve that case. Heh... a guy who was silenced should deeply hate those fugitive suspects, right?"

Lei Hanqin nodded: "So, everyone, let's overcome the difficulties and keep up the good work. Also, I've already notified the 119 emergency services and other brothers in the city bureau. Reinforcements will be here soon, so don't let them underestimate our Second Anti-Drug Brigade!"

"That's right! What's there to be afraid of when it's just climbing a mountain!"

"We're police officers! When we're saving lives, we can't think about the dangers involved."

“I think the terrain on the other side of the river is flatter. I’ll go over there, but I don’t think I can find a shallow area to cross the river or a boat.”

"Enough rest, let's get back to work!"

"Damn it, you idiot Dalian, you can't get hurt!"

The police officers were immediately energized. In addition, they were worried about Zhao Zhigao in their own team. They ignored the danger and began to try to tumble and roll down.

Even when one of the fastest young auxiliary police officers exclaimed that there were still survivors, the group sped up even more.

"Xiao Zhao, you absolutely can't get hurt!"

Lei Hanqin turned his head and looked in the direction the Land Rover had left, but it was already shrouded in darkness, and he couldn't see anything at all.

"Hehe... As expected, it has to be Brother Ma! Your escape technique is quite something, isn't it? Last year you were a bit clumsy, I remember you almost got your nose caught? This year you were clean and efficient, well done!"

In a dark courtyard, the three cars successfully met up.

Big Brother Yang instructed his five remaining men to unload the luggage and transfer everything from the car to a tour bus parked in the yard. He and Little Brother Yang gathered around to smoke, and he gave Little Brother Ma a thumbs-up with satisfaction.

"That was a really clever move!"

Even Simba nodded in admiration, saying, "The police have been stalled, and we've already left Zhang City. We have plenty of time to change our appearance. Heh... who would have thought we'd have to switch to another car along the way?"

"A tour bus with all the necessary permits, a few ordinary travelers mixed in with a senior citizen tour group—no one would usually check us on the road! We'll just go to Yunnan Province openly and then cross the border without anyone noticing. Haha..."

Brother Yang also laughed excitedly.

'Waaaah...'

The sudden sound of sirens approached, causing everyone in the courtyard to freeze. Several of his men looked at their leader, only to find that the expressions of Yang, Yang Xiao, and Simba were barely calm.

But no one dared to move, standing like wooden figures in various parts of the yard. Only when the sirens approached and then quickly moved away did everyone's expressions finally soften, and smiles returned to their faces.

"What's there to be afraid of! This is a legitimate auto parts store, with all the necessary licenses and permits. As long as we don't cause any trouble, who would suspect we're hiding here?"

Brother Yang smiled and comforted everyone, then turned to Zhao Zhigao, who was pulling out weapons from under the car: "Agao, you don't need to bring those things. They were just for the Zhangzhou police in case of emergency, but now that everything is over, they're useless."

"It's better to be safe than sorry, Brother Yang. You can't be without self-defense equipment."

Zhao Zhigao poked his head out from under the car, one hand gripping the footrest and the other holding a newspaper package. The newspaper package resembled a knife, which Zhao Zhigao tossed far away, landing at Xiao Yang's feet.

Brother Yang picked it up with a smile, tore off a piece of newspaper, played with the long-handled dagger for a moment, and then inserted it into the belt loop at his lower back.

"Tsk! None of you are easy to deal with. Whatever."

Big Brother Yang glared helplessly at Little Brother Yang, then lowered his guard.

Even though Brother Yang hadn't made thorough preparations before rushing out to escape, he wasn't in a hurry to leave. Instead, he turned and went into the auto parts store. He didn't turn on the lights, but simply leaned against a stool, smoking quietly.

Brother Yang and Brother Simba stood outside in the wind for a while, then, feeling cold, they quickly went inside.

"what?"

Lin Ge tilted his head and looked at the money tree.

This leopard cat seemed quite familiar with this place; it wasn't its first time here. It took a few steps forward, tail held high, then turned back to urge Lingo on, its eyes filled with defiance.

"Tsk! I don't have time to play with you!"

Lin Ge's only thought now was how to alert the police and how to transmit the group's location and route while ensuring his own safety.

But right now there's a serious problem: he has absolutely no idea where he is! He only knows it's a small town on a national highway between Zhangzhou and Shashi, but he can't recall its exact name.

Along the way, he saw many shops, and even in the early hours of the morning, there were still many people out and about. But Lin Ge couldn't understand their accents at all, and the shop signs didn't specifically show the city, district, or town address. So even though Lin Ge could hear many people talking and see many things, he couldn't describe the hiding place of the Yang gang in writing.

There are so many towns like this in the countryside, who knows where this is?

"Meow!"

Seeing that Lin Ge ignored it, the Money Tree got a little angry. It trotted over to Lin Ge, squatted down directly opposite him, staring straight into his eyes, its expression showing an eagerness to unleash its fury.

"Fine, you've got it now."

Lin Ge decisively backed down; now was not the time to cause trouble.

If they couldn't contact the police in time, they'd have to wait until they were on the highway to figure out what to do. But once they got on the tour bus next to them, everyone's every move would be exposed to the others. On their side, it was just themselves and Zhao Zhigao, while the other side had three tough guys: Little Yang, Jackie Chan, and Little Ma. Add to that Simba and that blind man with sharp hearing, and it would be hard to do anything unnoticed on the bus.

So, it would be great if we could leave some clues in this yard.

With the presence of the police dogs and the scent of its feline overlord, the yard should be discovered by them soon. Therefore, the most difficult part is leaving a coded message that can be identified but won't be detected by the drug dealers.

"This is a bit difficult for me to handle! Zhao Zhigao, you'd better come up with an idea!"

As Lin Ge followed the money tree toward the corner of the courtyard wall, he glared fiercely at Zhao Zhigao, who only knew how to work honestly. Zhao Zhigao didn't even look up, but silently rummaged through all the knives hidden in the three vehicles.

Unfortunately, the number of his former brothers and accomplices had dwindled from a dozen to four, and these knives were becoming too many to use. Zhao Zhigao simply gave each of them two or three knives to embolden his poor underlings who were filled with a sense of shared fate.

As for whether these guys would rebel against Brother Yang because of this, Zhao Zhigao remained regretful. Giving them weapons was not to incite them to revolt; Zhao Zhigao simply left secret marks on some words when tearing open the newspaper.

"Ah Gao, put those papers away properly, don't leave them lying around! If you really have nowhere to put them, burn them for the brothers to start a fire, it's really cold outside!"

Simba suddenly spoke up.

Zhao Zhigao froze.

But he quickly looked up, deftly crumpled the newspaper into a ball, and then walked towards the leeward side of the bus.

He didn't do anything like secretly hiding a newspaper, especially with these four guys watching him. As for whether they were truly loyal to Brother Yang, Zhao Zhigao didn't dare gamble, and at this point, he no longer dared to underestimate these men's actions.

"That's terrifying! Seven people in one car, killed without warning. He's not some 'Little Ma' (a famous Chinese actor), he's a killing machine."

With a sigh, Zhao Zhigao found what appeared to be a dog's food bowl nearby; the bowl's sides were smashed, making it look like the uneven surface of the moon. He stuffed newspapers inside, piled a few pieces of wood on top, and pulled out a lighter to start a fire.

"The wood is wet, use this charcoal."

Zhao Xin pulled out half a bag of slightly damp charcoal blocks from somewhere and tossed it in front of Zhao Zhigao with a blank expression.

The two looked at each other, and the regret in Zhao Xin's eyes was very clear.

"Thank you, uncle!"

Zhao Zhigao nodded to Zhao Xin, then casually pushed all the wood to the ground, replaced it with charcoal, piled it up, and quickly started a fire.

"hiss……"

Several shivering dogs huddled around a small stainless steel dog bowl to warm themselves by the fire.

Hey guys, wanna borrow a seat?

Little Ma, with a cigarette in his mouth, led Jackie Chan over.

Since entering the courtyard, these two men haven't done any work; they've only been staring at the few 'survivors' here. Their gazes are terrifying to everyone, but they're not satisfied and actually come closer.

At this moment, no one dared to underestimate Brother Ma anymore, and they immediately made way for him by the fire pit.

"Hehe... Ah Gao, you're pretty good at starting a fire! Even with snow falling overhead, you can still get a fire going. Speaking of which, what's the point of just making charcoal? Why don't you just burn all this wood too?"

As he spoke, Brother Ma picked up the wet firewood that Zhao Zhigao had put on the ground and was about to throw it into the brazier.

"Brother Ma, wet firewood will produce smoke, and it wouldn't be good if someone noticed."

Zhao Zhigao, the only one who maintained the same squatting posture as Little Ma and Jackie Chan, blocked Little Ma's hand with a blank expression.

Everyone stared at him in astonishment, never expecting this guy to be so brave. Didn't he know that just half an hour ago, this "Little Ma" had ruthlessly killed all seven of his own brothers?
Aren't you afraid of dying?!
"cigarette?"

Surprisingly, Little Ma wasn't angry; he just stared into Zhao Zhigao's eyes.

"The smoke is choking. Even if the police don't happen to be passing by, the people around will know what's going on in our yard. If the police come knocking, the bus tracks won't be easy to hide. Little Ma, don't cause trouble for the boss."

Zhao Zhigao considered the concerns of his superiors with a blank expression.

"Makes sense!"

Little Ma suddenly laughed, nodded, and tossed the wet firewood aside.

He squatted there, swaying precariously, his index and middle fingers braced on the ground, like a menacing toad. His eyes were fixed on Zhao Zhigao, a smirk playing on his lips. "Sure enough, you're more than just someone who knows how to raise cats. Brother Yang has a good eye; he's finally found a good catch for me. Hey! Honestly, A-Gao, have you ever killed anyone? Want to learn from me? It's really satisfying! That feeling of a watermelon exploding with a bang…"

With his arms outstretched and eyes closed, Ma Ge savored the moment, a smile on his face suggesting he felt incredibly dashing.

However, apart from Jackie Chan, the others felt a chill in their hearts.

This guy... he's insane!
"This guy... is he joking?"

Lin Ge stared wide-eyed in surprise as the money tree emerged from a gap in the yard, went into the bamboo grove behind it, found a shallow mound of earth, dug around for a few moments, and pulled out the skeletons of three or four kittens.

Lin Ge was certain that this must be the bone of a newborn kitten!
Having witnessed the white cat give birth, he knew exactly what newborn kittens looked like. Although they looked about the size of mice, their skulls and finger bones were completely different from mice. The bones that had been pulled out of the money tree, though mixed together and indistinguishable as to how many were from, were undoubtedly those of dead kittens.

Looking at the money tree again, he shoved it aside, making a gurgling sound in his throat, and his eyes were wet, whether from tears or melting snowflakes, it was hard to tell. This made Lin Ge feel a deep sense of grief and despair.

These kittens might all be the offspring of a money tree.

A thought suddenly popped into Lin Ge's mind.

"Meow."

When the money tree let out a soft meow, and even when it lowered its head to lick a pale little skull, which made Lin Ge feel heartbroken, Lin Ge felt like the hair on his body was about to stand on end.

This scene left him speechless, unable to describe the feelings he had.

"Meow!"

The money tree suddenly lay down on its side, its two front paws scooping up all the bones it had dug out and pulling them into its arms, licking the wet mud off them without any disgust.

"Why...did you bring me here?"

Lin Ge didn't know what he should do, nor did he understand why the money tree wanted him to see these things.

These things look so uncomfortable, they make me feel so awful!
Why did you have to tell me about this?

Lin Ge was breathing heavily, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

"Meow~~"

The Money Tree glanced at Lingo, but didn't say anything more. It patiently licked all the kittens clean, then hugged them tighter, curling up to hide the kittens under its belly.

Its body trembled slightly, and it even struggled inexplicably in mid-air, its expression one of great panic.

A scene flashed through Ling Ge's mind: the moment when the Money Tree had just given birth to these kittens. It tried its best to protect them, but Big Yang Brother grabbed it by the scruff of its neck without hesitation, pulled it up, and killed all the kittens.

Then, without giving the money tree any thought, he ordered people to bury its offspring in this place, and then left with the money tree.

And this departure lasted for a year.

Even Brother Yang may have completely forgotten about this, but only the Money Tree still remembers its children.

"Damn bastard!"

Lin Ge swore loudly.

He didn't know how to comfort the money tree, so he could only stand quietly to the side, watching the money tree lie with its children with its eyes closed, as if it were sleeping very peacefully.

Even as snowflakes dripped down the bamboo leaves in the bamboo grove, making a pitter-patter sound as they landed on the heads and bodies of the two cats, the money tree remained silent.

"Money tree? Mimi?"

At this moment, Brother Yang followed the path outside the bamboo forest and came looking this way.

(End of this chapter)