The male supporting character was actually myself.

The other dozen or so plainclothes police officers also pedaled hard on their bicycles, making the group particularly conspicuous on the country road where bicycles were rare.

The county government frequently sends teams to rural areas to raise awareness about combating human trafficking.

Overall, the measures have been effective; at least so far, there haven't been many major cases of trafficking in women and children.

But privately everyone knows that there are definitely some human traffickers operating in the shadows. Some of the trafficked women either resign themselves to their fate or are driven to mental breakdown by torture, and the children insist that they were born at home, so it is impossible to find out. Only a very small number of them are brought to light.

In some places, if one family buys women and children, the entire village becomes an accomplice, and even if people know about the buying and selling, rescue operations are usually very difficult to carry out.

The authorities have been trying to find a typical case to severely crack down on illegal and criminal activities, but they are struggling to find a starting point, and everyone is willing but unable to do so.

Therefore, when Danlu Daoren hurriedly walked into the Public Security Bureau to report the crime of trafficking women in Qilizhuang Village and was about to hand over the women to the traffickers, the entire bureau took it very seriously.

The police station immediately organized a special task force, and officers in plainclothes were dispatched to apprehend the human traffickers, buyers, and middlemen!

"Phew! Qilizhuang is really far from the county town." The deputy captain was sweating profusely from pedaling his bicycle, wishing he could have more wheels to make it go faster. "Will we be stopped by the villagers? We've encountered this situation many times before."

The captain said firmly, "The bureau is already sending reinforcements, but we only have a limited number of bicycles available. Time is of the essence, and the mission is crucial. Everyone must proceed with extreme caution and ensure that not a single criminal escapes!"

If the villagers try to stop us... we should fire our guns; we absolutely cannot lose in terms of momentum.

Everyone, keep a close eye on this. Whichever villager makes the biggest fuss and obstructs the law the most, arrest them and bring them back to the police station to be charged with violent obstruction of law enforcement!

This is also to set an example, so that in the future there will be people who will obstruct rescue operations regardless of the consequences.

Fire one shot, and most people will behave.

"Okay!"

The team members, full of enthusiasm, responded in unison.

If that Taoist priest wasn't lying, this is a major case! If all goes well, they could even catch the human traffickers who have been lurking in the countryside, and follow the clues to dismantle the entire gray industry chain of human trafficking.

The thought of being able to personally participate in such a major case made everyone excited, and they secretly encouraged each other to crack the human trafficking case perfectly!

Although He Gousheng and his group were pulling a large person in a wheelbarrow after coming out of the ravine, their speed was not slow at all.

After all, even the matchmaker was someone who was always busy and hardworking, so walking this short distance and pushing a girl weighing a hundred or eighty pounds was not difficult for her.

The only time was wasted was by choosing a quieter side road, but when we finally saw Qilizhuang in the distance, it was still some time before noon.

"Let's rest for a bit, I'm so tired I can't walk anymore." He Gousheng had been walking for dozens of miles and his legs were already weak and trembling. Now, seeing Zhuangzi, he felt even weaker and was panting heavily. He waved his hand and said, "Just rest for a bit, we can walk home in one go!"

The matchmaker glanced at him disdainfully, "You're really pathetic. You're already this tired after just a few steps? You're supposed to be a farmer, aren't you?"

"Ha, no wonder you insisted on having us deliver to your door. If we didn't take care of you, you probably wouldn't get home until tomorrow!"

"Yes, yes, yes, you've worked hard, brothers. I'll cook you some hearty dishes when I get home for lunch today, and we'll have a good drink together..."

…………

At He Gousheng's insistence and with various flattering promises, the group sat down to rest under a large tree in the fields, about six or seven miles from Qilizhuang.

After hearing the report from the scout Xiao Bai, Jiang Chen quickly discussed the time with Liao Yuzhou in a low voice. Then, he rode his bicycle with his wife and hurriedly headed to the village secretary's house.

"Oh no! Something terrible has happened to the Party Secretary!" Liao Yuzhou jumped out of the car and ran into the yard before it had even come to a complete stop, his anxious expression belying his true feelings.

The village secretary's wife was hanging clothes to dry in the yard when she saw Jiang Chen rushing over and asked, "Jiang Chen's wife, what's wrong? What happened?"

Is the Party Secretary home? Something terrible is about to happen in our village!

Hearing the commotion, the village secretary came out of the house, waved his hand calmly, and said with a smile, "Don't rush, don't rush, tell me slowly what's going on."

“I took my wife to the county town early this morning to buy some things, and then I heard some big news!” Jiang Chen parked his bicycle and said calmly, “Someone reported a case of human trafficking to the police station, and the police are taking it very seriously and have mobilized to arrest the perpetrators.”

"Oh, human trafficking? That's a big case!" The village secretary said warily. "What? Why are you in such a hurry? Do you have something to do with the people in our village?"

Liao Yuzhou nodded and replied, "At first we were just watching the excitement, but then we ran into a classmate of mine and casually asked him a few questions, and that's how we found out the inside story—the buyers in the women trafficking case are the He Yongqiang family from our village!"

"As soon as we heard the news, we rushed back to report it. The police officers handling the case are probably about to enter the village."

"Quickly think of a way to at least absolve our village of all responsibility!"

"That's right, we can't let him cause such a scene and drag down the advanced collective title that our village worked so hard to achieve..."

…………

The young couple, working in perfect harmony, spilled the beans like beans from a bamboo tube, and soon revealed the truth.

"Damn it! He Yongqiang's whole family is scum! I should skin them alive!" The village secretary jumped up and down in anger.

He wouldn't have believed it if it were someone else, but Jiang Chen's family had educated and sensible educated youth who had been sent to the countryside, and their classmates worked in the county town, so their information was naturally accurate.

The matter was of great importance, so the village party secretary immediately consulted with the village chief and quickly came up with a solution.

Three groups were operating simultaneously, with the fluffiest member, responsible for gathering all clues to the host, being the busiest. After all, to take advantage of the situation and use the opponent's strength to annihilate the protagonist's group, they had to seize the right opportunity and not give the script team any chance to exploit loopholes.

As time ticked by, the police team, led by their captain and deputy captain, split into two groups and secretly surrounded the dilapidated courtyard where the Taoist priest had drawn a detailed map.

The appearance of unfamiliar faces in the village easily attracts attention, so the team leader pretended to be passing by and asked for a drink of water, chatting with an old lady near He Yongqiang's house.

Liao Yuzhou listened attentively for a few minutes before stepping forward and striking up a conversation with a smile.

While the old lady went into the yard to fetch water, she lowered her voice and asked, "Comrade, are you Captain Wang from the county public security bureau? I'm a sent-down youth; we met at the welcome ceremony when I first arrived."

Captain Wang was surprised that he had been recognized and exposed. He twitched his lips and was about to improvise when he heard the handsome young man say, "There just happened to be a hooligan case in our village. The village chief and the village party secretary are about to report it to the county."

Is the team leader on official business or just passing through?

Since the county is so far away, if you have the time, could you arrest the suspect without making a fuss?

After all, it was a case of hooliganism. The village chief and the others meant to keep quiet so everyone would know, otherwise, with so many people in the village gossiping, the girl's innocence would be at stake..."

"What a coincidence?" Captain Wang glanced back and recalled that the educated youth seemed to have come out of the back alley. According to the simple village layout drawn by the Taoist priest, that was exactly where the village secretary's house was.

It seems they had just finished discussing things and happened to run into me?

On one side was a serious case of trafficking in women; on the other side was a case of hooliganism that was being cracked down on. Captain Wang never expected to receive a report while on duty. He was thinking about how to handle both cases without delay when a few men walked out of the alley while talking.

Jiang Chen glanced over as he pushed his bicycle, and Liao Yuzhou quickly waved to indicate, "Village Chief, Party Secretary, we don't need to make a trip to the county town!"

Having already discussed countermeasures, the village chief and the village party secretary soon met Captain Wang through Liao Yuzhou's "introduction" and provided him with a certificate stamped with the village's official seal.

"He Yongqiang?" Captain Wang was stunned when he saw the suspect's name on the certificate. "He...he..."

He pointed to the dilapidated house not far away and asked, "Excuse me, does He Yongqiang, the hooligans you're talking about, live in that courtyard?"

"Of course, his house is right up ahead! You two know him, right?"

"Officer, your bureau even came to investigate this incident in our village. However, we couldn't find any witnesses, and the person involved was a mentally challenged person with the mental capacity of a few years old, so their words couldn't be corroborated, and in the end, the matter was dropped."

But now there are witnesses and testimonies.

They were a few young guys who saw him bullying the silly girl. When they saw the police coming, they were afraid of being arrested and going to jail, so they chickened out. Now they heard that stopping a crime is not only not a crime, but also a merit, so they honestly told them everything.

Everything matches up perfectly; it can withstand a reinvestigation by the police!

"Yes, this matter must be dealt with seriously and reinvestigated. Even a fool who doesn't know any better is still a person with dignity. How can we let him bully us and then just let it go unpunished?"

"Before, we couldn't say anything without evidence, but now that we have all the witnesses, officers, you must help us get justice. We can't let good people suffer, and we absolutely cannot tolerate bad people!"

…………

Faced with the village chief and the Party Secretary's explanations, Captain Wang vaguely remembered that he had indeed heard about the Qilizhuang incident a while ago.

He immediately nodded solemnly and replied, "I understand the matter and will definitely respond to the comrades' demands to reinvestigate."

But now He Yongqiang is involved in another major case, and we urgently need the assistance of our grassroots comrades to better complete our task. We hope the village chief, the Party secretary, and other enthusiastic villagers can lend a hand.

"No problem!" The village secretary patted his chest and gave a guarantee, then whispered, "Officer, will the big case you mentioned affect our village's status as an advanced collective? Apart from He Gousheng's family, everyone in our village is really doing well. We can't keep an eye on them every day, can we?"

We can't let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch!

Captain Wang had no idea how the case was connected to the selection of advanced collectives, but if the other party could help arrest the criminal suspect and solve the major case by following the clues, it was true that he, as an enthusiastic citizen, could be commended.

Hearing the police officer say this, the village secretary and others finally felt relieved.

Regardless, let's deal with this family of troublemakers first!

The two brothers, Lao Chou and his brother, have been in this line of work for quite some time. They are experienced and know how to use their identities to hide, so they have not been caught for many years.

When they were almost at the village entrance, the two sent the matchmaker and He Gousheng to take a look.

Around noon, every household in the village was cooking and there was nothing unusual about them. After observing carefully for a long time, they finally pushed their wheelbarrow into the village and headed straight for the dilapidated courtyard, urged on by the impatient He Gousheng.

"You're back?" Qian Shuandi came out of the house on crutches, her face beaming as she looked at the bulging sacks on the wheelbarrow. She lowered her voice and asked her husband, "How does he look? Is he old? Is he worth this much money?"

He Gousheng rubbed his hands excitedly, "Hehe, she's good-looking! She's no less attractive than He Jiangchen's wife, and even younger and more vibrant. It's just that she looks at people with her narrow eyes and seems very unconvinced. Locking her in the house and starving her for a couple of days will make her easier to deal with."

Qian Shuandi happily invited the matchmaker and the trafficker to sit inside, while she hurriedly used her crutches to go to the next room to greet her son.

Hearing that he had indeed spent money to buy a beautiful young woman to be his wife, He Yongqiang, who had been lying on the bed like a corpse, could no longer lie still. Although he had lost his manhood, he was young and full of longing and yearning for beautiful girls, so he struggled to get up and limped off to check out the "goods".

"We can see it clearly! The family of three buyers, the middleman, and the human traffickers are all there! Caught red-handed! Make the arrests immediately!" With the assistance of the village secretary and others, Captain Wang, who had been lying in wait in the neighboring yard and had a clear view of the scene, waved his hand, signaling the team members who were lying in ambush to make the arrests.

Inside the house, several people were exchanging money for goods. He Yongqiang couldn't wait to open the sack to see what the girl inside looked like. Just then, he suddenly heard a series of hurried footsteps outside the courtyard.

"Damn it, run!" Old Chou shouted alertly, leaping out of the broken window beside him and quickly preparing to jump onto the low roof to escape from behind. But for some reason, he tripped and fell flat on his face. He was then immediately tackled by the police officers who rushed in.

Seeing this, He Yongqiang didn't realize what he had done wrong. He shouted and yelled, and was kicked to the ground by the village secretary who was already angry. He howled in pain, and then with a "snap," the bright, cold handcuffs were put on his wrists. Only then did he realize that he was dumbfounded.

The entire arrest process was swift and smooth. Even the matchmaker and Qian Shuandi, who tried to act tough because they were women, were tied up and kept under guard by the women they had temporarily found to help, led by Liao Yuzhou and the secretary's wife, while waiting for the police to arrest and deal with them.

Li Shuyun, finally able to peek out and breathe fresh air after the sack was opened, looked at the figures moving around the room and heard the reassuring voices around her, such as "Don't move!" "We are the people's police!" "You have been arrested." Tears welled up in her eyes, and she couldn't stop crying even though her mouth was covered.

..........................................

postscript.

That summer, a sensational case occurred in Qilizhuang that shocked the surrounding villages.

Through the persistent investigation by the police, starting with the Wang matchmaker and the Lao Chou brothers, a large-scale trafficking gang involving dozens of people in four provinces and cities was dismantled.

From sourcing to transportation to sales, they have a clear division of labor.

Some of these individuals wander around committing crimes, and when they encounter suitable women or children, they abduct them using violence, sell them to their next buyer, transport them in the opposite direction, and then resell them to other human traffickers scattered in remote mountain villages.

These people then sought out matchmakers or other acquaintances familiar with the population of various villages to work together to resell the women and children they had acquired.

Pulling out the radish brought out the mud; through interrogation, one person bit another, ultimately leading to the rescue of nearly a hundred trafficked women and children!

Li Shuyun was the luckiest; although she was frightened and went hungry for two days, she did not suffer any real harm. After being rescued, the relevant departments quickly contacted her family and sent her home immediately.

The county public security bureau was highly praised for its great success in this operation, and even the enthusiastic villagers of Qilizhuang who assisted in the case received a collective honor medal and reward.

The case was of great importance, and it was handled with swift and decisive action. The results were quickly publicized, and a special campaign was launched in rural areas to use loudspeakers as a negative example for public education.

He Gousheng and Qian Shuandi, as the main buyers, were found guilty of crimes with clear facts and sufficient evidence, and were sentenced to death with immediate execution.