Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

Sai Kung, Tai Long Wan.

The night was as dark as ink, and the howling wind whipped up waves that crashed against the cliffs with a deafening roar. The Yao family villa stood alone halfway up the mountain, like a solitary island about to be swallowed by darkness.

From the bushes surrounding the villa, countless eyes were peering intently through night vision goggles at the tightly closed iron gate.

"Attention all units, the target vehicle will arrive in five minutes."

Ya Zi pressed her earpiece, her voice low and calm. She wore a bulletproof vest, held an MP5 submachine gun, and had camouflage paint on her face. She had long since lost her usual charm, leaving only the competence and murderous aura of a senior inspector.

"We are ready in West Kowloon."

Chen Jun's voice came through the headset.

Considering the target's heavy firepower, Ya Zi specially borrowed an elite Major Crimes Unit from the West Kowloon Regional Headquarters for support. The leader of the team was none other than Chan Kwan (Bourbon), who had just been promoted to Chief Inspector and made a name for himself in a battle on Lantau Island.

"Inspector Chen, I'm troubling you again this time." Ya Zi, wearing a bulletproof vest, checked the MP5 submachine gun in his hand and said to Chen Jun in his earpiece, "According to intelligence, Tan Cheng has brought more than a dozen men, all of them desperate criminals, and they have AKs and Black Star rifles."

"It's all for the sake of maintaining public order on Hong Kong Island; it's the right thing to do."

Chen Jun remained calm and capable, pulling down his hat brim and giving off a deep look. "Don't worry, Madam. This cage is secure tonight; not even a fly can get out."

He glanced at the watch on his wrist.

7:00 PM.

The show is about to begin.

……

Inside the villa.

The atmosphere was so frozen it seemed like water could drip from it.

The huge floor-to-ceiling windows were completely covered by heavy curtains, and the light from the crystal chandelier shone on the polished marble floor, reflecting a cold luster.

Mr. Yao sat on the sofa in the center of the living room, holding a glass of red wine, but he hadn't drunk a drop for half an hour. His face was terribly gloomy, and behind him stood a full twenty bodyguards in black.

Although he was old, that didn't mean he was deaf. Ever since he noticed Tan Cheng's unusual behavior, he had spent a lot of money to strengthen security.

The bodyguards were carrying Uzi submachine guns, their muzzles pointed intentionally or unintentionally at the gate.

"boom--"

The heavy iron gate was violently smashed open.

Three black sedans roared into the courtyard, their screeching brakes piercing the night air.

The car door opened, and Tan Cheng, dressed in his signature white suit and carrying a submachine gun, swaggered in with more than twenty burly gunmen.

"Acheng, what do you mean by this?"

Mr. Yao looked at his "good apprentice," whom he had personally promoted, his eyes filled with disappointment and anger. "With so many people and guns, does he even respect me anymore?"

"Mr. Yao, times have changed."

Tan Cheng spat out the toothpick, his eyes turning ferocious. "Your old counterfeit money is now worthless, and your brain can't keep up with the world. Instead of occupying this position without doing anything, you should retire early and go to MIT to enjoy your retirement with your wife and kids."

"Hand over the company seal, the keys to the overseas accounts, and the client list. I'll spare your life since you worked for me for several years."

"presumptuous!"

Mr. Yao smashed his wine glass. "Tan Cheng! You think you can fly just because you've grown wings? Don't you even know whose territory this is!"

As the glass shattered, the twenty bodyguards behind Mr. Yao simultaneously raised their guns.

Tan Cheng's men were not to be outdone, immediately cocking their guns, and the two sides faced off in the narrow living room. Dozens of dark gun barrels pointed at each other, the air thick with the smell of gunpowder, as if a single spark could ignite an entire barrel of explosives.

Dozens of guns from both sides were instantly locked in a standoff, and the air was thick with the smell of gunpowder, ready to explode at any moment.

However, both sides were exercising restraint. Tan Cheng wanted to obtain the account without bloodshed, while Mr. Yao wanted to find an opportunity to strike decisively.

"Don't get excited."

Tan Cheng flicked his cigarette ash, looked at the bodyguards, and said, "Brothers, there's no future following this old man. He's washed up. As long as you put down your guns and work for me from now on, each of you will get a settlement of 500,000 yuan!"

At this extremely delicate moment, when both sides were on edge, a bodyguard standing behind Mr. Yao, who had long been bribed by Fourth Brother, suddenly roared as if provoked by something, as if he had been given a shock:

"Watch out! He's about to draw his gun!"

In fact, Tan Cheng was just reaching for the lighter on the table.

But that roar was like the last straw that broke the camel's back.

"Bang!"

Then the bodyguard pulled the trigger without hesitation. The bullet grazed Tan Cheng's scalp and shattered the antique vase behind him.

This shot completely ignited the battlefield.

"Damn it! You won't listen to reason, so kill him!" Tan Cheng was so scared that he rolled behind the sofa and roared.

"Da da da—!!!"

"Bang bang bang—!!!"

Intense gunfire instantly rang out, bullets flew everywhere, glass shattered, and expensive vases and oil paintings were reduced to dust in the hail of bullets.

……

"action!!"

Outside the villa, Ya Zi heard the gunshots and decisively gave the order to launch an assault.

"Bang! Bang!"

Several stun grenades were thrown into the courtyard.

Immediately afterwards, fully armed Special Duties Unit (SDU) and Major Crimes Unit detectives descended like divine warriors, rushing in from all directions.

"Police! Drop your weapons!!"

"Police! Don't move!!"

The two groups fighting inside the villa were completely thrown into disarray. Although they were fierce, they were quickly overwhelmed by well-organized tactics and unable to raise their heads.

In the chaos, seeing that the situation was hopeless, Tan Cheng turned around and tried to run towards the back door.

"Trying to run away?"

A cold voice rang out from his side.

Tan Cheng turned around abruptly, but before he could raise his gun, he saw a dark gun muzzle pointed directly at his forehead.

It's Chen Jun.

"No...don't kill me! I'll surrender—" Tan Cheng shouted in terror.

Chen Jun's eyes remained unwavering, as if he were looking at a corpse.

The boss had instructed that if they wanted to make a fuss about Tan Cheng, the prerequisite was that he had to be dead. Because only a dead man could bear the brunt of the blame.

"Bang!"

A gunshot rang out.

A bloody hole appeared between Tan Cheng's eyebrows, and the ambition and fear in his eyes froze instantly. He fell backward and crashed heavily to the ground, still tightly clutching the submachine gun that hadn't finished firing.

"Report: The bandits resisted arrest and have been killed."

Chen Jun calmly reported into the walkie-talkie, then put away his gun, without even glancing at the body, and turned to join the team controlling the scene.

Half an hour later.

The battle is over.

The villa was a scene of utter devastation, littered with corpses. Tan Cheng was dead, most of his men were dead or wounded, and the rest were all pinned to the ground and handcuffed.

Thanks to the bodyguards' desperate cover and the fact that he hid in the basement, Mr. Yao was fortunate enough to escape unharmed, though he was covered in soot from the smoke.

When Song Zijie dragged him out of the basement, this once arrogant counterfeit money tycoon trembled as he looked at the corpses scattered on the ground and his "good apprentice" lying in a pool of blood.

"take away!"

The boy coldly gave the order.

……

Early morning, West Kowloon Regional Headquarters, interrogation room.

Mr. Yao sat in the interrogation chair. Despite the ordeal that had lasted all night, he gritted his teeth and adopted a "dead pig is not afraid of boiling water" attitude.

"I know nothing. I'm a legitimate businessman. Tan Cheng went crazy and led a group of people into my house. I'm the victim."

No matter how many groups of people interrogated him, his answers were always the same few sentences.

"Squeak—"

The interrogation room door opened again.

Only one person came in this time.

Chen Jun.

He held a folder in his hand, walked over and sat down opposite Mr. Yao. Without saying a word, he turned around and turned off the surveillance camera and recording equipment in the corner.

Upon seeing this, Mr. Yao's pupils contracted slightly.

"Mr. Yao," Chen Jun took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, but didn't offer it to Mr. Yao, "we don't have time to waste with you, so why not cooperate a little?"

"I told you, I'm a victim..."

"Shhh."

Chen Jun raised a finger to interrupt him. Then, he took out a few photos from the folder and gently pushed them in front of Mr. Yao.

Mr. Yao looked down and his pupils dilated to their maximum size instantly, and his whole body began to tremble violently.

Those were some photos taken secretly.

The background is a detached house in the capital of Canada. In the photo, a gentle middle-aged woman and a seven or eight-year-old boy are playing on the lawn.

Those were his wife and children, whom he had secretly sent abroad and hidden away!

"You...you are police officers! You can't..." Mr. Yao's voice was filled with fear.

"Mr. Yao, please introduce yourself."

Chen Jun took a puff, and his face appeared somewhat dark and inscrutable amidst the swirling smoke.

"I am Chen Jun, the deputy commander of this operation. Of course, in another world, I also have a code name—Bourbon."

"Bourbon?"

Mr. Yao was stunned for a moment, then seemed to realize something, his face turning deathly pale. "You...you're from 'The Painter'?!"

Even the police operation commander was one of their people? This is absolutely terrifying to think about!

"Since you've guessed it, let's be frank. You only have two paths before you now."

Chen Jun held up two fingers.

"First, keep being stubborn. Then you can rot in jail. As for the outcome... I think the security situation around MIT isn't great lately, so it's not unusual for burglaries or car accidents to happen."

Mr. Yao trembled all over and slumped into the chair.

"second."

Chen Jun's voice turned low, "Cooperate with us."

"...How can we cooperate?"

"It's simple. Admit that those 'super dollars' circulating in the market recently were created by you and Tan Cheng."

"What?!" Mr. Yao's eyes widened. "But that's clearly..."

"It doesn't matter whose it is."

Chen Jun interrupted him, "The important thing is that the police need answers, society needs an explanation, and we need a... scapegoat."

"You just need to admit that you were coerced by Tan Cheng. The real technology and mastermind is Tan Cheng; you are only responsible for providing the venue and some funding. Don't worry, we will place a batch of equipment and materials for manufacturing super-dollars at your company headquarters to make this plan flawless."

"In exchange, we will ensure the safety of your wife and children. Moreover, given your 'significant meritorious service' and the fact that you were an accomplice under duress, your sentence will be significantly reduced. If you're lucky, you'll only serve ten years."

Mr. Yao fell silent.

Looking at the photos of his wife and children on the table, Mr. Yao knew he had no choice.

"Okay... I agree."

Mr. Yao closed his eyes, two streams of tears flowing down his face. "That counterfeit money, I made it... The core technology is in Tan Cheng's hands..."

"very good."

Chen Jun put away the photos, a satisfied smile curving his lips. "Oh, by the way, I'll also give you a gift."

"Hong Wengang, the one who betrayed you first and caused you to be unable to sell counterfeit money, is now in the detention room next door."

"Since you want to earn merit, why not have a good talk with the police about his dirty deeds? Like the channels for human organ trafficking, or the whereabouts of those missing persons..."

Mr. Yao suddenly opened his eyes, his eyes flashing with hatred.

Hong Wengang!

That treacherous old dog who led him to this point!

People don't admit their mistakes when they fail, and Mr. Yao is no exception. He now obsessively believes that the cause of everything, besides that damned painter, was the initial return of the goods by that despicable Hong Wengang.

"Don't worry," Mr. Yao said through gritted teeth, "Regarding that beast Hong Wengang, I will definitely... tell you everything I know, without holding back!"

……

Next door, the VIP detention cell.

Hong Wengang's legal team has just arrived and is preparing to apply for bail based on "insufficient evidence" and "physical reasons".

"Mr. Hong, rest assured, as long as you don't give anything, the police can't do anything to you. As for the 20 million counterfeit bills, that is indeed a bit tricky, but we can say..."

Before the lawyer could finish speaking, the interrogation room door was pushed open.

Chen Jun held a newly printed statement, a victor's smile on his face.

"Hong Wengang, you don't need bail."

The boy slammed the confession on the table. "Your old friend, Mr. Yao, has just confessed everything."

"What?!" Hong Wengang was shocked.

"He not only admitted to manufacturing super-sized US dollars, but also agreed to become a witness for the prosecution, revealing all the evidence that you bought counterfeit money from him over the years and used counterfeit money to traffic human organs in Southeast Asia."

"He also reported to us that you were the one who helped obtain the raw materials for Super Dollar. Now, our police are formally filing charges against you."

"Impossible! He's lying!"

Hong Wengang was so angry that he trembled all over and his heart was clenching with pain.

He never expected Mr. Yao to be so ruthless! This was practically a fight to the death!

Hong Wengang roared hysterically, "He must be insane! The super-dollar has absolutely nothing to do with me! It's that painter—"

"Save your breath," Chen Jun said coldly, looking at him. "The evidence is conclusive now, and the equipment for the Super Dollar has been found based on Mr. Yao's confession. No matter how you try to deny it, it's useless. The police now suspect that the painter you mentioned is just a fabrication to evade responsibility. Hong Wengang, you're finished."

At this moment, Hong Wengang's mental defenses completely collapsed.

Since you, you old dog Yao, are determined to kill me, then I'll drag you down with me!

"I want to report this! I want to expose it!"

Hong Wengang's eyes were bloodshot, like a mad dog cornered, and he launched a chilling counterattack: "Mr. Yao still has several arms smuggling lines! And evidence of his past murders! I have it all! I want to apply for a plea bargain."

……

Over the next three days, a spectacular "dog-eat-dog" drama unfolded in the West Kowloon region.

Mr. Yao and Hong Wengang, former business partners, went on a vicious battle to win even the slightest chance of a reduced sentence, revealing every dirty and sordid thing the other had done over the decades.

The police were extremely busy, using up several cassette tapes every day just to record statements.

Pulling out the radish brings out the mud along with it.

With their mutual revelations, the entire Southeast Asian underground criminal network suffered a devastating blow. Countless middlemen and smugglers were arrested, and several criminal dens were raided.

A week later.

The police force held a grand press conference.

"...Under the police's swift and decisive action, the task force codenamed 'Fox Hunt' successfully dismantled a major transnational counterfeit currency syndicate headed by Tan Cheng and Yao, seizing counterfeit currency equipment and raw materials, and further uncovering a transnational human trafficking case orchestrated by Hong..."

Under the spotlight, Ya-zi, as the head of the task force, received a personal commendation from the Commissioner of Police, and the flowers on her epaulets were changed to those of a Senior Inspector. She is the youngest and most dazzling female Senior Inspector in the history of the police force.

Standing behind her, Song Zijie, though he only received a medal for bravery, was smiling more happily than anyone else.

Because below the podium, his brother, Song Zihao, was clapping excitedly.

The two brothers exchanged a glance, and the years of estrangement vanished in that moment.

……

Kowloon Tong, Yau Yat Tsuen Villas.

Lu Chen turned off the TV, watching the peaceful scene on the news, and gently swirled the red wine in his glass.

"Well done."

He turned his head and looked at Brother Ma and Fourth Brother standing behind him.

"The tumor has been removed, the scapegoat has been found, and the road has been paved."

Lu Chen picked up a perfect super-US dollar note that Ruan Wen had just delivered, with all its flaws removed.

That deep, dark green shimmered with a captivating luster under the light.

From now on, the "Super Dollar" will be shrouded in mystery once again.

After all, a counterfeit is still a counterfeit, and as long as it circulates on a large scale, there is always the risk of it being discovered. But with today's "dog-eat-dog" drama, the situation is completely different.

In the future, when this batch of banknotes causes financial turmoil in Japan, everyone's attention will immediately focus on the already destroyed international counterfeit currency syndicate, assuming that it is their remaining "remnants" or "stockpiles" that are causing the trouble. The real mastermind, "The Painter," will remain hidden behind this fog.

The downfall of Mr. Yao and Tan Cheng not only concealed the truth, but also laid the most solid firewall for Lu Chen's advance into Japan and his unscrupulous accumulation of wealth.

"Next, we need to prepare for the opening of Garreau's East Longitude branch."

Lu Chen's gaze turned to the northeast, his eyes gleaming with ambition.

"It's about time to go to that island nation and collect decades' worth of interest."