Courtyard House: I, the eldest son of the Jia family, have returned from the battlefield.

Jia Dongming jumped off the train first, gave a hand signal, and the team members silently flowed behind him like water, stealthily moving towards the dense shadows of the courtyard.

The group stopped behind a crumbling wall just 30 or 40 meters from the entrance of the alley.

Jia Dongming squinted at the alley entrance—in a sheltered corner, two young men were leaning against the wall smoking, the embers dying out in the darkness, and the faint sounds of laughter and conversation could be heard.

He turned to Chen Qiang, who was pressed against the wall, and whispered, "Two lookouts on the right side of the alley entrance."

"Take three men and sneak over there quietly. Subdue them without making a sound."

Chen Qiang nodded and quickly pointed out three team members.

Like shadows blending into the night, the four men, using the shelter of houses and clutter, meandered closer to the faint crimson light.

Before they had even gotten close to the alley entrance, the wind carried the sound of the two people chatting intermittently.

Chen Qiang gestured behind him, and in the brief moment between laughter, the four men suddenly pounced! Chen Qiang covered the mouth of the nearest man with one hand, the muzzle of his gun already firmly pressed against his temple, his breath hot against the man's ear: "Don't move."

The other person realized something was wrong and instinctively reached for the whistle hanging on his chest. His fingers had barely touched the cold surface of the iron whistle when he was violently pushed to the ground.

The gun barrel pressed heavily against the back of his neck, and all his movements froze instantly.

At almost the same time, similar scenes unfolded at the entrances of two other alleys.

Upon receiving the coded signals from each group that they had succeeded, Jia Dongming immediately led the remaining team members to quickly converge on Baochao Hutong.

He stared intently into the depths of the alley, his gaze like that of a night-walking owl, his ears catching every unusual rustle.

After walking only ten meters or so, he suddenly raised his hand to stop the group, pointing to a large, leafy old locust tree to the left. "Chen Qiang,"

He lowered his voice to a whisper, "See that tree? There's someone hiding in it, a sentry."

"Take one of your brothers, disguise yourself as a gambler, and sneak over. Make your move as soon as you get close."

Chen Qiang understood, handed the spear to the teammate next to him, quickly took off his coat, and haphazardly smeared some dirt on his head.

He and another colleague, who was also simply disguised, walked arm in arm, their steps unsteady, muttering to themselves as they staggered toward the locust tree, looking like two gamblers who had lost everything and were still trying to win back their losses.

Among the tree branches, the young man on lookout heard the noise and cautiously peered down.

Seeing two staggering, cursing middle-aged men approaching, his tense shoulders relaxed. He glanced at them casually before turning to survey the other two alleys.

The moment he turned his gaze away, the two people under the tree suddenly leaped up like cheetahs.

The young man's gaze suddenly froze as he looked beyond the night—two groups of figures, under the cover of darkness, were rapidly and silently approaching the depths of the alley, the outlines of their guns gleaming coldly in the dim light.

His heart tightened, and he immediately jumped down from the tree branch where he was sheltering.

The moment his feet touched the ground, the two people beside him, who had been staggering, suddenly sprang up like lurking leopards, pinning him firmly against the tree trunk from both sides.

A rough hand tightly covered his mouth and nose, and a low voice drilled into his brain through his ear: "Don't make a sound."

In the distance, Jia Dongming's gaze remained fixed on that tree.

Seeing the young man on lookout suddenly jump down, his eyes sharpened—the other man must have noticed the flanking force and was going back to report.

Almost simultaneously, Chen Qiang and Lin Weiguo had subdued the young man on the ground.

Without further hesitation, Jia Dongming made a gesture and led his team out of their hiding place, rushing straight into the depths of Baochao Hutong.

The blue brick gatehouse of courtyard number seventeen soon came into view.

Jia Dongming paused, his gaze sweeping across the tightly closed gate like a sharp hook, then slowly moving towards the towering courtyard wall.

He stood still for a moment, as if he could see through the bricks and stones and see several guards drinking and chatting with peanuts in the front gatehouse; the windows of several rooms in the middle courtyard were all covered with thick cotton quilts, and faint noise and murmured voices seeped out from the gaps; and in the main room of the back courtyard, two middle-aged men were embracing young women, joking and urging them to drink, while in the side room, seven or eight girls with their hands and feet tied were huddled in a corner with strips of cloth covering their mouths.

Jia Dongming withdrew his gaze and whispered to Guo Jianguo and Li Aijun, who were following closely beside him: "Qian the Cripple confessed that there are quite a few guards in the compound, and they may be hiding some tough weapons."

Once the operation begins, anyone who draws a gun will be shot immediately.

He paused briefly, then quickened his pace: "One team is blocking the front gate."

The second team followed me and broke in from the backyard.

The three teams, being small in number, will maintain perimeter security; not a single person can escape.

Once the order was given, Jia Dongming led two teams of more than ten people to the back of the house.

The backyard wall was much lower than the front yard wall. One of the team members approached and asked, "Section Chief, the wall isn't high. Should I climb over and open the gate?"

Jia Dongming shook his head, his gaze fixed on the dark back door: "No need."

Once the front yard gets chaotic, the people inside will naturally flee to the back.

We'll stay here.

No sooner had he finished speaking than a chaotic cacophony of screams and crashes erupted from the courtyard.

Immediately afterwards, a panicked male voice rang out from somewhere in the backyard: "Brother Biao! The police have infiltrated! Let's go!"

"Splash—"

The crisp sound of shattering porcelain rang out, followed by the chaotic sound of fleeing footsteps approaching from afar, heading straight for the backyard.

"Squeak—"

The friction sound of the bolt being suddenly pulled open pierced the air.

The wooden door swung open, and three armed figures staggered out.

Jia Dongming instantly raised his gun, aiming it at the burly middle-aged man in the center, and shouted sharply, "Halt! You're surrounded!"

The moment Brother Biao stepped out the door, he shuddered and instinctively raised his arm, pointing his pistol at the source of the sound.

"Bang!"

The gunshot rang out sharply, tearing through the night.

Brother Biao felt as if his wrist had been struck by a hammer, and with a painful roar, the pistol slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

One of the team members who rushed ahead saw Brother Biao raise his gun and was so shocked that his scalp tingled. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, he heard the gunshot that rang out first, and then saw the other's weapon fall to the ground.

A cold sweat broke out on his back. He lunged forward, kicked the gun off the ground, swung his own rifle, and slammed the butt of the rifle into Brother Biao's forehead: "You dare to shoot! I'll teach you to!"

Brother Biao groaned and fell to the ground.

The other two were terrified by the gunshot and tried to run back, but were pinned down by teammates on both sides and unable to move.

Seeing that all three were under control, Jia Dongming walked over to the bodyguard who was still hitting Brother Biao with the butt of his gun and said to stop him: "Tiejun, stop."

If the fighting continues, this man might die.

Inside the courtyard of the siheyuan, the rabble that had previously gathered to gamble had long since descended into chaos, blindly rushing between the courtyard walls like headless cockroaches.

Several people who tried to escape by climbing over the wall all fell into the trap that the Second Brigade had laid in advance.

Jia Dongming personally intercepted seven or eight panicked gamblers at the courtyard gate before waving his hand to signal his men to escort the group of people into the courtyard.

Stepping into the backyard, he glanced at both sides and quickly pointed out two people: "Tie Jun, Ye Tian, ​​this door is yours."

Not even a fly is allowed to enter or leave without my permission.

After assigning the goalkeepers, he turned to the rest of the team members and said quickly and clearly: "Xue Beiping, Li Gang, each take two people and have them search every single room for me, inch by inch."

The rest of those arrested were all taken to the Intermediate People's Court.

Jia Dongming led his team, escorting the newly captured prisoners toward the central courtyard.

Just as they reached the round moon-shaped archway, Li Gang's voice suddenly boomed from behind: "Section Chief! Come quick! There are... many female comrades locked up in this room!"

Jia Dongming suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He already knew there were several girls being held captive in the backyard, but he quickly turned around, feigning surprise: "What's going on? Lead the way!"

Following Li Gang into a side room, in the dim light, several figures with their hands and feet bound and huddled in the corner came into view.

Jia Dongming frowned and shouted at Li Gang, who was standing there dumbfounded, "What are you still looking at? Untie them right now!"

The girls were stunned for a moment when they saw the uniformed figures suddenly rushing in, and then their eyes suddenly lit up with a light of relief.

As soon as the ropes were removed, they hugged each other tightly, and their long-suppressed sobs and cries burst forth, filling the entire room.

Jia Dongming stood amidst the mournful cries, looking somewhat uncomfortable.

He cleared his throat, trying to keep his voice as gentle as possible: "Comrades, we are from the security department of the steel rolling mill."

You are safe now.

"Tell us anything that happens to you later, and the organization will definitely stand up for you."

After saying that, he immediately turned to Li Gang and instructed him: "You take care of things here first. Find a safe place to settle them down and ask them carefully how they got here."

I'll go to the Intermediate People's Court and keep an eye on things."

Upon hearing the assignment, Li Gang looked at the group of girls crying their eyes out and immediately felt overwhelmed. With a pained expression, he leaned closer and whispered, "Section Chief, this task of comforting the women... I'm really bad with words. Could you find someone else to do it?"

Jia Dongming glared at him and snapped in a low voice, "You're not good at it, but I am? Stop talking nonsense and follow orders!"

Before he could finish speaking, Xue Beiping burst out of the main house in the backyard like a whirlwind, his face flushed, his voice low but unable to hide his excitement: "Section Chief! There's a huge discovery in the main house! Cash, land deeds, and this thick stack of IOUs!"

He gestured with his hand to indicate an exaggerated thickness.

Jia Dongming's eyes narrowed, and he immediately ordered: "Beiping, your group must immediately register and inventory all the seized property, and then load it directly onto trucks and transport it back to the factory for safekeeping."

"yes!"

Xue Beiping straightened his back and gave a crisp salute.

Passing through the moon gate and stepping into the central courtyard, the scenery is already different.

A dozen or so men who looked like guards squatted in a row under the eaves of the winter wing, their hands behind their heads.

In the center of the courtyard, dozens of people were squatting, all of them gamblers who had just participated in the gambling game.

When Deputy Captain Guo Jianguo saw Jia Dongming approaching, he immediately stepped forward and reported in a steady voice: "Section Chief, preliminary count revealed that we have arrested two gambling den leaders, seventeen bodyguards and thugs, seven prostitutes, and eighty-three gamblers."

The gambling funds are being sorted and counted.

Jia Dongming's gaze swept over the group of squatting gamblers, noticing that many of them were wearing work clothes from various factories, including his own steel rolling mill.

He hesitated for a moment, then said to Guo Jianguo, "Old Guo, first verify their identities."

All factory employees must be picked up by their respective security departments and notified.

As for those few in our factory…

He paused for a moment, then said, "Take them back directly."

"Unemployed individuals, verify their address, and hand them over to the local street office for processing."

All key members of the gambling den, its henchmen, and the women involved were brought back to the factory for separate and thorough interrogation.

His eyes darkened. "I have a feeling that we can uncover something unexpected from these people."

Guo Jianguo caught the deeper meaning in that sentence and leaned forward slightly, asking in a low voice, "Section Chief, what unexpected gain are you referring to...?"

When Jia Dongming mentioned the girls he rescued from the back room, his tone turned somber: "Old Guo, there were about a dozen young girls tied up in the back room, their hands and feet bound."

"I suspect this place is more than just a gambling den; it's probably also involved in human trafficking."

Guo Jianguo was taken aback upon hearing this.

Several cases of children going missing in the city have occurred recently, and the cases have remained unsolved. If we can finally eradicate these cases, the security department will be very proud.

Xue Beiping came through the moon gate from the backyard and saw Jia Dongming talking to Guo Jianguo. He immediately stepped forward to report: "Section Chief, we have searched all the rooms in the back."

There is 12,380 yuan in cash and 32 small gold bars.

Five property deeds – including the courtyard.

There are also forty-one IOUs, totaling three thousand two hundred and seventy yuan in debt.

He paused, then added, "There are still some rice, flour, and cooking oil piled up in the west wing, and a lot of cured meat hanging from the beams."

Jia Dongming nodded, but then asked about something else: "How did those girls end up here? Did Li Gang find out anything?"

Xue Beiping replied, "They were crying inside the house before I arrived."

Li Gang said he would ask more questions later.

He added, "The money on the gambling table has been counted; it totals three thousand two hundred and seventy-two dollars and fifty-three cents, plus four small gold bars."

Upon hearing this, Jia Dongming suddenly remembered the shot he had just fired.

He moved closer to Guo Jianguo and lowered his voice: "Once the gunshot rings out, the Dongcheng branch will definitely send people."