Villain? No, I'll catch up with the protagonist after passing the civil service exam.

Jinhua Residential Area is one of the oldest and most chaotic urban villages in Jinghai City.

The alleyways here are as narrow as a spider web, with buildings so close together they could be shaken handshakes, and the air is perpetually filled with the damp, musty smell and the complex odors of various foods. For fugitives, this is an excellent hiding place.

But for Lu Jingyan, this was nothing more than a hunting ground that had already been marked out.

"Bang!"

The thin wooden door of Room 201 in Building 3 was kicked open by Zhao Tiezhu; it was as fragile as a biscuit.

The blinding beam of the flashlight instantly tore through the darkness of the room, illuminating the less than 30-square-meter rented room as bright as day.

The room was a complete mess.

Leftover takeout containers were piled up in the corner, cheap clothes were scattered everywhere, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of cheap perfume mixed with mold, making people want to vomit.

"Group one, guard the doors and windows! Group two, check the kitchen and bathroom!"

Zhao Tiezhu issued the orders in a deep, resonant voice, and the special police officers behind him moved swiftly, instantly controlling all possible escape routes.

Lu Jingyan did not rush inside.

He stood at the doorway, wearing professional night vision goggles and holding a portable infrared thermal imager. On the screen, the red signal representing a vital heat source was crystal clear.

The "crime radar" mocked him from the depths of his soul:

[Ding! Target is ten meters ahead. Vital signs are stable, heart rate is slightly increased, and chewing movements are underway.]

Chewing movements?

This guy is really carefree; he still has the mood to eat at a time like this.

Lu Jingyan's gaze slowly swept across the living room, finally settling on the half-open bedroom door.

On the thermal imaging screen, a humanoid silhouette radiating eerie heat was curled up in an extremely contorted posture under the bedroom bed.

"Clear the living room, everyone step outside," Lu Jingyan ordered into the walkie-talkie.

Although Zhao Tiezhu was puzzled, he immediately carried out the order.

Soon, only Lu Jingyan remained in the entire rented room.

He strode forward, his leather boots making a soft sound on the sticky floor. He didn't turn on the light, but instead used the dim light from his night vision goggles to make his way to the bedroom door.

The door was gently pushed open.

The scene in the bedroom was even more appalling; the single bed covered with pink sheets was teetering on the verge of collapse, as if it would fall apart at any moment.

Lu Jingyan walked to the bedside and looked down at the dark gap under the bed.

He made no announcements or warnings.

For this kind of self-satisfied "protagonist," any verbal persuasion is superfluous. Only the most direct and physical methods can bring their fantasies-filled minds to a jolt.

He slowly raised his right foot, which was clad in a military boot.

Then, he kicked the weakest point of support on the edge of the bed hard!

"Bang--!!!"

A loud crash, accompanied by the ear-piercing sound of wooden planks shattering!

The already rickety single bed shattered into pieces as if it had been rammed head-on by an enraged bull!

"Awooo—!!!"

A blood-curdling scream came from under the bed.

Immediately afterwards, a disheveled and grimy figure, like a giant cockroach whose tail had been stepped on, rolled out from under the pile of broken planks, clutching its head.

He still had half a compressed biscuit in his mouth, his face was covered in dust and cobwebs, and his once expensive designer shirt had been reduced to a rag.

Gu Yanchen looked up and met Lu Jingyan's eyes, which glowed with a faint green light in the darkness (the effect of night vision goggles).

In that instant, he felt as if he were seeing not a human being, but a Terminator who had crawled out of hell.

"Why...why..."

Gu Yanchen's voice trembled, and he spat out crumbs of biscuit all over the floor. "Why...how do you always manage to find me?"

"You can save the answer to that question for your fellow inmates."

Lu Jingyan turned off the equipment, removed his night vision goggles, revealing his cold eyes. He looked down at the once arrogant and domineering CEO, his eyes devoid of any pity.

He waved to Zhao Tiezhu at the door.

Zhao Tiezhu understood immediately and rushed in with two team members. Without saying a word, he lifted the still-dazed Gu Yanchen off the ground.

"Click."

The cold handcuffs were once again fastened to those familiar wrists.

This time, Gu Yanchen neither roared nor struggled.

His eyes were vacant, like a puppet whose soul had been ripped out; he only muttered unconsciously to himself:

"It shouldn't be like this... the script shouldn't be like this..."

"No! I won't leave!"

Just as the SWAT team was about to take him away, Gu Yanchen suddenly came to his senses and struggled like a madman, with the veins on his neck bulging.

"Where is my woman! Where is Youchu! What have you done to her! I need to see her! You beasts, did you torture her to extract a confession?"

He had already imagined a thousand tragic scenes of Shen Youchu being abused, and his domineering CEO spirit was burning brightly once again.

Seeing his foolish, love-crazed appearance, Lu Jingyan finally couldn't help but take pity on him.

He felt it was necessary to let this male protagonist, who lived in his own script, see what reality was like.

Lu Jingyan took out his phone and pulled up a video that had just been sent from the interrogation room. It was Shen Youchu's first statement after her arrest.

He shoved his phone screen right in front of Gu Yanchen.

In the video, Shen Youchu, handcuffed, sits on an interrogation chair, crying her heart out, her makeup ruined.

"Officer! I was wrong! I was really wrong! I don't want to go to jail!"

"What love! It's all fake! Gu Yanchen forced me into this! He's a devil! He manipulated me! He threatened my whole family! This prison break was also his doing; he said he'd kill me if I didn't do it!"

"Please, I'm a victim! Go ahead and shoot him! I'll be safe if you shoot him!"

……

The video has finished playing.

The rented room was deathly silent.

Gu Yanchen stared blankly at the woman on his phone screen, who had berated him mercilessly and wished she could tear him apart. He was completely petrified.

His domineering CEO spirit, burning brightly to "reclaim his masculine dignity" and "save his beloved woman," was at this moment as if it had been doused from head to toe with ten thousand tons of liquid nitrogen, leaving not even ashes.

What happened to your promise of unwavering commitment?

What happened to the promise of sacrificing for love?

What happened to our promise to be on the run and stay together until death?

So... it was all a one-man show by him?

"puff--"

A surge of blood rushed to his head, and Gu Yanchen felt a sweet taste in his throat. He spat out a mouthful of blood, which landed on Lu Jingyan's shiny leather shoes.

Then, his eyes rolled back, and he promptly fainted from anger.

Lu Jingyan frowned in disgust, took a step back, and said to Zhao Tiezhu beside him, "Drag him away. Also, notify the infirmary to prepare, don't let him die in the station, I still need to make him clean his shoes."

Zhao Tiezhu suppressed a laugh and saluted: "Yes, Captain Lu!"

Watching Gu Yanchen being dragged away like a dead dog, Lu Jingyan picked up the walkie-talkie, her tone returning to calm:

"Attention all units, the suspect has been apprehended. Dismissal."

He glanced down at the flaxen hair retrieved from the scene, and then remembered the system's message, "Unknown protagonist aura energy residue," and his gaze became even more profound.

This prison break appears to be a farce orchestrated by Shen Youchu and Chu Tianjiao's men, but who are the mysterious hacker who secretly helped Gu Yanchen "disappear in a secret room," and this woman with unknown abilities?

Things seem to be getting more and more interesting.

Lu Jingyan walked out of the dilapidated residential building, breathing in the crisp, cold air outside, a barely perceptible smile curving his lips.

He turned to Xiao Zhang behind him and said:

"Pass the word down and tell the interrogation team to get ready; they'll be busy later."