On this side, Cheng Su, with murderous intent coursing through her veins, was heading to kill that scumbag Zhang Yujun, while Qi Taiguo, far away in E County, was also feeling a bit uneasy, which affected his performance during the entire military operation meeting, making him seem distracted.
Gao Linbing, his comrade-in-arms, also quickly noticed his unusual mood and took advantage of the break to pull him aside for a smoke.
"What’s going on? You seem a bit distracted," Gao Linbing asked.
Qi Taiguo shook his head and said, "I don’t know what’s going on, but my heart feels uncomfortable today, like something’s suffocating me."
"Could you be missing your sister-in-law?" Gao Linbing asked with a smile.
"Oh, cut it out!" Qi Taiguo gave him a big eye roll, but he was actually missing Cheng Su a bit.
Gao Linbing chuckled and, after coughing twice, asked seriously, "What do you think of this mission’s operation?"
Qi Taiguo’s expression grew stern as he said, "It’s hard to say. We’ve only caught small fries, and even after interrogating them, we haven’t extracted any crucial information. Talking about taking out Big Head, I see it as a real challenge—it’ll inevitably be a long-term battle."
The highway bandits seemed like an unorganized rabble at first glance, but capturing one or two doesn’t make a difference. The next day, two or three more would pop up, just like flies that can’t be killed, exactly as those caught have said: for every one captured, there are thousands more!
There were simply too many of these bandits to catch them all.
Gao Linbing’s brows furrowed as he cursed in frustration, "Damn it, these bastards grow back like weeds after the spring breeze blows."
"Exactly!" Qi Taiguo replied with a bitter smile.
The rabble, although scattered everywhere and appearing disorganized, were actually quite united when caught. They didn’t reveal anything of importance and were brazen, ready to face whatever was coming.
"So, we’re really out of options?" Gao Linbing asked, taking a drag from his cigarette.
"That’s why I called it a prolonged campaign. If we want to eradicate them all at once, we’ll need to cut off the source and enforce strict national conditions. They must be made to feel fear," Qi Taiguo said.
"With them killing without blinking an eye, do you think these people can still feel fear?" Gao Linbing sneered.
Qi Taiguo said, "That’s why, first and foremost, we need to destroy the kingpin and haul him from his web. Without a leader, it’ll be easier to round them up."
Gao Linbing nodded in agreement.
In silence, Qi Taiguo reflected more deeply than Gao Linbing. To bring down the kingpin and extract from him the names of those who benefited most was the most challenging part.
Dealing with people from within the military, this mission was even tougher than going to war, and as for him, could he unmask the person lurking behind the scenes?
Qi Taiguo discarded the cigarette butt he was holding and thought carefully about this possibility.
At Yanjing Railway Station, a young man wearing a cap and carrying a large backpack bought a train ticket at the counter, passed the security check, entered the platform, boarded the train, found his seat, placed his backpack on the bed, and only then sat down and pulled his cap down.
If Cheng Su had been there, she would have been surprised; wasn’t this Ning Ge, who had said he was going abroad? Did Great Huaxia country suddenly become a foreign land to him?
Ning Ge reached into his inner shirt and pulled out a notebook. Inside, every page was filled with tight clusters of information and names, connected by a web of lines.
After closing his notebook, Ning Ge shut his eyes, thinking back to what Cang Ying had said over the phone, "Aren’t you secretly investigating the truth behind that incident? I’ve got word that some people are backing up the bandits of E County, and there’s a connection between the two. If you want to know, go ahead and look into it. If you find the truth, I’ll consider you the winner!"