Courtyard House: First, kill the hypocrites, leave none alive.

The dawn, in an almost cruel, grayish-white way, slowly tore through the darkness that had shrouded Tianjin Port all night.

But beneath this gray and white landscape, the city has already "awakened" ahead of time, in a way that is startled and shaken.

The echoes of the explosion seemed to still linger in the cracks between the bricks and tiles of the old western district. The smoke and stench of gunpowder were diluted by the cool morning sea breeze, but stubbornly seeped into the air, forming an invisible yet heavy unease.

Catfish Lane, a filthy corner that usually only gradually awakens near noon, was now completely surrounded by crowds, vehicles, and glaring police tape.

A dozen or so jeeps and motorcycles painted in blue and white with flashing roof lights were crowded at the narrow alley entrance, while more police officers poured in on foot, their faces solemn and their steps hurried.

Yellow and white police tape completely sealed off the small area where "Fuhai Teahouse" was located, stretching straight and fluttering in the morning breeze.

Armed police officers maintained order outside the cordon, preventing any curious onlookers from approaching.

The teahouse was in complete disarray, a shocking sight.

The shockwave from the explosion not only destroyed the walls and windows on one side of the front hall, but also left the adjacent courtyard in a mess.

Bricks and rubble, broken wooden tables and chairs, twisted and deformed metal parts, shattered cups and bowls... mixed with dark red and black bloodstains that had almost seeped into every inch of the ground, covered everything in sight.

The bodies, lying haphazardly, have been initially cleared away and covered with white sheets. They are placed side by side on an open ground a little further away. A rough count reveals that there are more than twenty bodies!

Beneath the white sheet, various grotesque and terrifying outlines were vaguely visible, some with missing limbs, others with bloodied and mangled faces. The heavy smell of blood mixed with gunpowder smoke and acrid odor made many of the newly arrived young police officers turn pale and suppress the urge to vomit.

Technical surveyors, dressed in white coats, masks, and gloves, carefully moved through the ruins and bloodstains, taking photos, measuring, and collecting samples.

Every time you turn over the rubble, every time you move a body, you may uncover new and disturbing details.

"Preliminary count indicates 28 deaths."

A middle-aged policeman with a stern face reported in a low voice to his branch leader who had rushed over.

"Eight bodies were found in the front hall and twenty in the backyard. The weapons... were of various kinds: hunting rifles, homemade firearms, pistols, rifles, machetes, bayonets... almost all of them were illegal. Some of the bodies had criminal records. Preliminary identification suggests that the leader was the teahouse owner 'Fat Three,' and several others were notorious gang leaders in the area and... fugitives."

The branch leader's brows furrowed deeply as he stared at the desolate area, speechless for a long time.

Twenty-eight lives lost!

Overnight, in the city!

This goes far beyond the scope of an ordinary criminal case; it's downright massacre!

"Where did the explosives come from?" the leader asked in a deep voice.

"The investigation is still ongoing. Preliminary assessment indicates it's a homemade explosive, made of ammonium nitrate. Its power isn't particularly high, but it's very effective at close range in causing damage and creating chaos. The detonation method... is most likely throwing or triggering."

"Where are the marks of the gunfight?"

"Very intense,"

The middle-aged police officer pointed to the walls and wooden pillars riddled with bullet holes. "At least a variety of weapons were used, including pistols, shotguns, and rifles. The number of shots... is hard to count precisely, but the number of spent shell casings at the scene is staggering. Analyzing the ballistics and the positions of the bodies, both sides in the firefight were extremely fierce, with almost no probing before jumping straight into the most brutal close-quarters combat."

The leader's gaze swept over the white sheets, then returned to the utterly destroyed ruins of the building, his eyes filled with extreme solemnity.

This was not just a murder; it was a meticulously planned, or... forced, all-out annihilation campaign!

"What was the motive? Revenge killing? Double-crossing?"

The leader asked, but the answer was already in mind.

The police had some knowledge of the details of Fuhai Teahouse, but they hadn't taken any action due to a lack of solid evidence and the possible network of relationships involved.

Now, this place has been ravaged by blood, and those who died are nothing but scum...

It's not clear yet.

The middle-aged policeman shook his head. "There are signs that the valuables inside and outside the teahouse have been ransacked, but it's uncertain whether it was the work of the murderer or due to the original chaos. Fatty San did indeed hide a lot of cash and gold bars on his person and in the teahouse. Some of them are missing, but we cannot rule out the possibility that they were taken by his accomplices or others during the chaos."

Just then, a young technician rushed over, holding a small notebook, half-burnt, wrapped in an evidence bag: "Report! Found near the woodpile in the backyard, it should have fallen from Fatty San's body!"

The leader took the evidence bag. Through the transparent plastic, he could vaguely see some numbers, names, and dates written crookedly on the notebook, which looked like a simple ledger.

He carefully turned to a few pages, which contained transaction records of considerable amounts, involving obscure terms such as "smuggled goods," "parallel imports," and "shipping fees."

"It really is a hideout!"

The supervisor snorted coldly and handed the notebook back to the technician. "Check it carefully and see if there are any clues related to the murderer!"

"yes!"

Outside the cordon, the crowd of onlookers grew larger and larger.

At first, it was just nearby residents who had been awakened by the explosion and gunfire, clutching their pounding hearts and looking around in shock.

As dawn broke, the news spread like wildfire throughout the western part of the city. More curious, daring, and even trouble-loving people flocked from all directions, tiptoeing and craning their necks to try and see the horrific scene inside.

The murmurs buzzed like a disturbed beehive.

"My God... how many people have died?"

"I heard the Fuhai Teahouse got raided! Those bastards inside, not a single one of them is any good!"

"They deserve it! They should have been wiped out long ago! These scumbags, swindlers, bullies, and they even employ a bunch of thugs. They've been a cancer in this area for ages!"

"That's right! Wasn't it them who tricked Old Liu's son into losing everything and jumping into the sea last time?!"

"Who was the hero who did this? That was so damn satisfying!"

"I heard it was just him! He single-handedly stormed in and slaughtered Fatty San and his twenty-odd thugs!"

"Really? All by himself? Isn't that a god of war descended to earth?"

"Whether it's true or not, that bastard Fatty San is dead! It's so satisfying!"

"Keep your voice down! The police are still here!"

"What's there to be afraid of? Even if those scumbags die, what can the police do to us ordinary people?"

The discussions were filled with hatred and disdain for the dead (Fat Three and his gang), as well as undisguised amazement and even...admiration for the "perpetrator."

In this lawless land, in the eyes of these long-oppressed people at the bottom of society, the death of Fatty San and his gang was not a tragedy, but rather a belated justice, a case of evil being punished.

This pervasive, almost cheering sentiment among the crowd made the police officers maintaining order look even more displeased.

They understand the public's anger, but as law enforcement officers, they must investigate such a large-scale heinous case and such cruel killing methods to the end, regardless of who the victim is. This is their duty and also their responsibility to maintain social order.