Siheyuan: Hang Jia Dongxu, smash Banggeng to death!

Qin Ming didn't answer directly. His brows furrowed, his gaze still warily scanning the area ahead, he asked instead:

"You searched all the way from that side and didn't find a single trace? Didn't see anyone? Didn't hear any unusual noises?"

Xiao Chen shook his head, caught his breath, and reported to his superior: "No, Captain Qin, we've searched several alleys, looked for every nook and cranny where people could hide, but we haven't seen a single ghost."

This is strange.

Qin Ming's heart sank.

Based on previous assessments and the direction of pursuit, the two thugs, in their panic, were most likely to flee to this area where they could easily hide.

They had set up an ambush beforehand, and someone was chasing after them from behind; theoretically, they should have been able to force them into the trap.

Could it be... that the criminals changed direction midway?

Or perhaps they didn't run in this direction?

Or perhaps... they hid in the home of a resident along the way?

This thought sent a chill down Qin Ming's spine.

If the criminals, in a desperate move, break into a private residence and take hostages, the situation will become even more complicated.

As Da Liu and his team searched, they mainly focused on alleyways, ruins, and empty houses. They did not knock on doors to check each house, which gave the criminals an opportunity.

Liu asked suspiciously, "Captain Qin, did the criminal escape instead of being caught?"

Wang Gang nodded, and Da Liu and Xiao Chen's joy vanished instantly upon seeing this.

"We can't wait any longer!"

Qin Ming made a decisive decision and ordered in a deep voice, "Wang Gang!"

"Here!" Wang Gang immediately came over from the side.

"Take a group of people and conduct a thorough search of the area around the alley where Liu Haizhong's body was found."

The focus is on residents, shops, and abandoned houses along the route.

Be careful in your approach; try not to disturb the crowd, but be thorough. Don't let anyone escape within a three-mile radius.

"Understood, Captain Qin!"

Wang Gang responded and immediately selected more than twenty police officers to prepare for departure.

"Everyone else, follow me and seal off the main entrances and exits to this area, and at the same time..."

Qin Ming looked at the imposing gates and high walls of the steel rolling mill. "I need to talk to the steel rolling mill's security department again."

Please ask them to cooperate and increase patrols inside the factory area, as the perpetrators may have scaled the wall to get in, or they might even be people inside.

Not long after Wang Gang and his men hurriedly left.

Qin Ming chatted with Section Chief Liu of the Security Department for a while, and they had just walked out of the guard room on the side of the steel rolling mill gate when...

"Something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened! Captain Qin! Something terrible has happened—!!!"

Wang Gang's familiar loud voice rang out, filled with unprecedented panic and urgency.

Qin Ming and the surrounding police officers all felt a chill run down their spines, as if they had seen it before, and suddenly turned around to look.

Wang Gang's face was deathly pale, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat; he had completely lost the composure he usually displayed as a veteran detective.

"Wang Gang, what's going on? Why are you shouting like Xiao Wang?"

A sense of foreboding surged in Qin Ming's heart, and he asked sharply.

Wang Gang, breathless, pointed in the direction he had come from, his voice trembling with horror: "Captain Qin... Captain Qin, something terrible has happened,... someone else has died!!!"

"What?"

Qin Ming's pupils contracted sharply. "Where? Who died?"

"It's...it's right outside the burned-down courtyard house at No. 95, on that...that old crooked tree!!"

"Two watermelon-shaped haircuts were hanging there!! They were...the sons of Yan Jiefang and Yan Jiekuang! Yan Bugui's two sons!!!"

Their bodies...we don't know where they are, there's just...only the watermelon head is hanging from the tree!!!

"Yan Jiefang? Yan Jiekuang?"

Qin Ming felt a chill run from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head. On the first morning, Jia Dongxu hanged himself, and on the second day, Liu Guangfu hanged himself.

On the third day... it was only just dawn when they split up and took action, and two of them were killed?

Two lives lost!

That's it? Gone just like that?

Has this killer (evil spirit) gone mad?

The frequency and cruelty of the killings are escalating.

What if they kill everyone in the courtyard at No. 95, and even drag over and kill the dogs that pass by on the street?

The readers and the author were killed too?

All the police officers present were along with Section Chief Liu and his team from the steel mill's security department, who were preparing to cooperate with Qin Ming's operation.

Upon hearing Wang Gang's words, everyone fell silent instantly, their faces filled with shock and fear.

At this moment, Section Chief Liu's complexion was not much better than Wang Gang's, and cold sweat instantly broke out on his forehead.

The reason why the security department of the steel rolling mill has been relatively "restrained" and even "playing dead" since the serial murders at No. 95 courtyard house.

The main reason is that the factory director, Yang, privately told them that this matter involves a wide range of people and that the municipal bureau has sent a special commissioner to investigate.

Just let the security department "cooperate" and don't interfere too much, lest you get yourself into trouble and affect the stability of the factory.

Section Chief Liu was happy to have some free time, since those deaths were all incredibly bizarre, and he was afraid of getting tainted by bad luck.

As the situation spiraled out of control, more and more people died, and the deaths became increasingly gruesome. He became even more reluctant to get involved, fearing he would get himself into trouble, since the police station was there to protect him.

Qin Ming came to his door today demanding his cooperation in sealing off and searching the area, so he had no choice but to bring his men out to make a show of it; otherwise, it wouldn't be right.

But before this "appearance" could even begin, we heard such shocking and terrifying news.

Yan Jiefang and Yan Jiekuang?

He just died like that?

And they died such a tragic death?

He was a little scared. The enemy wasn't scary; what was scary was not knowing what the enemy was.

"Quick! Take us to see it!!"

Qin Ming snapped out of his shock and roared in a hoarse voice.

The pressure of solving the case, the anger towards the murderer, the horror of the victims' tragic fate, and a deep sense of powerlessness.

He was exhausted.

Section Chief Liu realized what was happening and quickly said, "Yes, yes, Captain Qin, let's go together! Quickly!"

He also knew that if he didn't show some positive attitude at this point, it would be really inexcusable.

He also wanted to see for himself whether it was really that strange.

The group consisted of criminal police officers brought by Qin Ming, some police officers brought back by Wang Gang, and seven or eight people from the steel rolling mill's security department, totaling nearly forty people.

Led by Wang Gang, they hurriedly ran towards the direction outside the No. 95 courtyard.

The morning light had fully illuminated the streets, and more and more pedestrians were getting up early to go to work or buy groceries.

Seeing such a large group of police officers and security personnel running by with solemn expressions and hurried steps, everyone turned to look.

hushed conversations filled the streets in the early morning, and an uneasy atmosphere permeated the air.

Before long, the group arrived at the open space outside the burned-down courtyard house at No. 95.

That old, crooked tree, which has witnessed too many joys and sorrows and is now even more bizarre, stands alone on the edge of the ruins.

Even from a distance, sharp-eyed people could already spot it.

On two lower branches of the old tree with its twisted branches, two round, dark-colored objects were hanging conspicuously.

As the crowd drew closer, the object's outline became increasingly clear.

They're two watermelon heads!

……

P.S.: The outline of this book is around 50 words. I had already finished writing it, but before I even reached the word count, they dragged me over and killed me too.