The game of power begins with the police officers at the local police station.

Chen Shi was busy in his office when Zhang Hu hurriedly pushed the door open and came in.

Chen Shi looked at Zhang Hu with displeasure: "Don't you know how to knock before coming in?"

"Chief Chen, I have urgent news to report."

Chen Shi immediately became interested. Could it be the fugitive Zhang Dong who had escaped back to Longtougou Village?

Zhang Hu said excitedly, "Last night, Ye Caihan got up to use the toilet and heard people talking. He listened carefully and realized that at three o'clock tonight, these two thieves were going to steal cattle and horses."

Chen Shi was greatly disappointed, but then he thought that every month, villagers in Longtougou Village had their cattle and horses stolen. If he could catch these two thieves and rid the people of this scourge, even if he didn't get any credit, it would still be a good thing.

"Did Ye Caihan let them find out?"

"No, Ye Caihan heard the conversation but dared not make a sound, fearing he would be discovered and killed to silence him."

"Did he recognize whose voices they were?"

He dared not say it.

Chen Shi glared at Zhang Hu: "Call him."

Zhang Hu took out his phone and called Ye Caihan.

The call connected, and Zhang Hu asked, "Ye Caihan, is anyone with you?"

"No, I'm at home."

"Our director wants to speak with you," Zhang Hu respectfully handed the phone to Chen Shi.

Chen Shi took the phone: "Ye Caihan, this is Chen Shi. I need to confirm something with you. You overheard two thieves talking last night, saying they were going to steal cattle and horses tonight. Did you hear what they were saying? Who were they?"

"Chief, I heard you clearly, but I dare not say it."

Chen Shi roared, "Speak! If you don't, we'll arrest you. If you do, and we catch those two thieves tonight, we won't expose you, and we'll even give you a private reward of two thousand."

People are naturally inclined to seek advantage and avoid harm; without hesitation, he'll definitely tell. Ye Caihan, mustering his courage, said, "It's a deal, don't expose me."

"I assure you, you can rest assured."

"I recognized one of the voices as Ma Shuang, but the other one was too soft for me to hear clearly."

Are you sure?

"I'm sure, I heard you clearly, we're all from the same village, there's no mistake."

"Don't make a fuss. From today to tomorrow, don't go anywhere, don't see anyone, just stay at home."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Shi was afraid that Ye Caihan would let slip the secret, alerting the thieves and causing them to cancel their plan to steal cattle and horses that night.

Chen Shi handed his phone to Zhang Hu: "Go down and make secret arrangements. Take six auxiliary police officers and four police officers. I will personally lead the team to Longtougou Village. Work in pairs to block the road out of Longtougou Village."

Don't let Ma Guoliang know about this.

Zhang Hu took the phone, looking puzzled: "Ma Guoliang is the head of the security team. It wouldn't be good not to tell him, would it?"

Ye Caihan recognized the voices of two thieves, and he was certain that one of them was Ma Shuang.

Ma Shuang is Ma Guoliang's cousin. If he finds out, he'll definitely call Ma Shuang beforehand and reveal our arrest plan for tonight.

Zhang Hu looked incredulous: "Impossible, right? Last year, Ma Shuang's cattle and horses were stolen. He couldn't possibly have stolen his own cattle and horses."

"This is called trying to cover up the truth. If his own cattle and horses are stolen, no one will suspect that he is the thief who stole them."

Zhang Hu thought it made sense; Ma Shuang was indeed cunning. He quickly went out to arrange the operation.

Chen Shi acted as if nothing had happened, continuing to handle his work and waiting to leave after get off work.

After get off work, under the pretext of going out to set up surveillance, he drove three police cars to eat first.

Upon seeing this, Ma Guoliang wondered what was going on. Why wasn't he called? He was the leader of the security team.

"Chief Chen, where are you headed?"

"We can go out for a stroll, but the fugitive hasn't been caught yet, so we can't let our guard down."

"I'll go with you."

"Old Ma, I'm leading the team today, you go back and rest. Next time you'll lead the team again, go out and take a trip."

Seeing that nothing serious had happened, Ma Guoliang went home.

After finishing their meal, around 8 o'clock, three police cars, with their sirens off, headed straight for Longtougou Village.

We arrived at Longtougou Village at around 10 a.m., and stopped about a kilometer away from the village.

Chen Shi instructed the auxiliary police officers to park the police cars separately and to find dry grass to cover them to prevent them from being exposed.

Including Chen Shi and Zhang Hu, there were six police officers and six auxiliary police officers, divided into six groups.

It was pitch black, and once you entered the village, you couldn't tell which way was which. That's when Zhang Hu came in handy. He had been in Longtougou Village for several months and knew it very well.

He discovered a problem: Longtougou Village is interconnected by roads, and any road can lead out of the village. Dividing the village into six groups is simply not enough; one person is not even enough to guard one road.

"Officer Chen, there are too many roads leading out of Longtougou Village. We can't guard them all. We don't know which road these two thieves will take to leave the village."

Of course, it's impossible to send people to guard every road. Chen Shi felt that two people per group was still not enough. These two thieves were from the village and were familiar with the terrain. When they saw the police, they immediately took a back road to escape. In the middle of the night, they were unfamiliar with the terrain and didn't know where to chase them, making it easy for the two thieves to get away.

We can't just shoot them dead. They were just stealing cattle and horses, not selling drugs. If we actually shot them, I wouldn't want to wear this police uniform anymore.

No matter what, they were just two thieves; it wasn't a case of killing them on the spot.

They were in a dilemma. The police force could not be dispersed, otherwise they would not be able to catch the two thieves at all, and they would only alert the thieves.

"Zhang Hu, Longtougou Village, which road leads to Nanxi Province?"

Zhang Hu thought for a moment: "There are five roads that lead to the border of Southwest Province."

Which road is closest to the highway?

After thinking it over carefully, Zhang Hu realized that there was only one road close to the highway: a small path five kilometers outside the village that led to the highway to the border of Southwest Province.

Chen Shi pondered carefully and concluded that the two thieves must have taken the cattle and horses to the side road and then to the highway, where there were people waiting to pick them up and put them on a cart to take them to the territory of Nanxi Province. By the time the villagers discovered this, they would have long since disappeared.

"How far is it from here, to the highway?"

"It's more than 30 kilometers around, that's quite a distance."

"You lead the way. We won't set up defenses in the village. We'll go straight to the highway, lie in wait, and catch them all in one fell swoop."

Zhang Hu said with a worried look, "Chief Chen, if these two thieves don't take this route, then all our work will have been for nothing."

"Stop talking nonsense. Just lead the way. That's an order."

Zhang Hu reluctantly got into the police car and led the way.

Chen Shi wasn't sure either. After analysis, this road was the most likely. The police force was limited. If they were to be dispersed to guard the road, even if they found two thieves, they wouldn't be able to catch them. After all, they were not familiar with the terrain. It was late at night, and they couldn't see their own hands in front of their faces. They couldn't even tell which way was which.

The two thieves were familiar with the terrain and could easily escape.

Life is a gamble, and Chen Shi gambled that they would take this path, the fastest and least risky way for them to transport cattle and horses.

Once cattle and horses are in Nanxi Province, even if they are found, they are not under the jurisdiction of the Fushan Town Police Station; the police station must apply to the Public Security Bureau and go through the proper procedures.

This is such a hassle. Stealing a few cattle and horses is a big deal for the villagers, but for the police, it's considered theft, a minor matter, and they won't spend too much energy on it.