County Kidnapping Case

Hu Ya took out her phone and answered it.

Her expression suddenly changed. "He's out of the martial arts gym, but he didn't go home... Your place is only a few steps away? How could it take half an hour? ... Okay, you wait, I'm coming over right now!"

"What's wrong?" Lin Xiaosu, with one foot already stepping into his own yard, stopped.

Hu Ya said, "A young student from the martial arts gym left the gym but didn't go home. He's missing."

The martial arts gym she mentioned was one she co-owned.

Why did she open it?

Hu Ya just liked to fight; she didn't know how to do anything else.

"How old is he?"

"Ten years old!"

"Ten years old, that's not too young, he knows how to get home. Maybe he went shopping?"

"I hope so, but things have been strange in the county town lately. Last week, another child went missing. They searched for a week and still haven't found him. The parents are causing a scene at the school every day, demanding their child back, and the school is overwhelmed. No, I have to go take a look..."

"I'll go with you!" Lin Xiaosu said.

"Let's go!" Hu Ya ran into her own yard, rode out a mini electric scooter, Lin Xiaosu sat behind her, and the scooter sped out of the village, heading towards Fengcheng.

Fengcheng was just an eighth-tier small county town. Theoretically, it was only separated by a mountain from this old Tashan Village. However, this mountain was a bit higher and larger, so in this small village, it felt like it was a hundred thousand miles away from the county town.

Going from this small mountain village to the county town, taking the detour through Shili Pu, was quite a distance.

Fortunately, in recent years, the "Village-to-Village Road Construction" project had started. Even in remote rural areas, the road surfaces were hardened and smooth, making the mini electric scooter run quite cheerfully.

Hu Ya was very anxious and rode very fast.

Lin Xiaosu wasn't in a hurry. He sat behind Hu Ya, holding her waist, and admired the scenery along the way.

It was currently the beginning of spring.

The grass by the roadside was green, the willow trees were tender, and the Yichuan River beneath the willow trees shimmered, reflecting Tashan.

After passing by Tashan Lake, they entered the southern area of the county town.

The southern part of the town was very desolate when Lin Xiaosu was a child; it was just suburban villages. Now, it had truly become part of the county town's territory, becoming more bustling and prosperous day by day. This expansion was the great work of the former county official, Luo Gong. This Secretary Luo, known as "Crazy Luo," was arrogant and acted domineeringly. Under immense pressure, he forcefully expanded the county town by three times. How did he do it?

His classic saying was: "Kitsuchi turns into gold, blank paper becomes silver."

What did that mean?

"Kitsuchi turns into gold" meant selling land.

"Blank paper becomes silver" meant issuing IOUs.

In short, no matter what difficulties he encountered, he would just get things done first.

This kind of forceful, brute-force approach made many people have strong opinions about him. Anonymous reports flooded in, accusing him of monopolizing power and having affairs with women, and accepting bribes from developers, even receiving a house for every bribe. However, as the southern area expanded and the small county town changed with each passing day, many people began to understand Crazy Luo better. Especially after he stepped down, as they walked on the wide southern avenue, they would occasionally sigh: Crazy Luo had indeed done a great deed.

Yes, the common people couldn't expect officials to be morally perfect. As long as he could do things, accomplish things, and bring tangible benefits to the people, even if he took some money or had some scandalous affairs, people would talk about it, laugh it off, and feel that it wasn't such a big deal...

The martial arts gym that Hu Ya co-owned was located in the southern part of the town. There was no other choice; the southern area had just been built, and the rent was cheap.

If it were in the old commercial district, the rent would be prohibitively expensive, and she couldn't afford to invest at all.

When they arrived at the entrance of the martial arts gym, a crowd had gathered.

The owner of the martial arts gym, Hu Ya's partner Old Zhou, was pacing and smoking. Two police officers were beside him, gathering information. A young woman, sweating profusely, was restless. As soon as she saw Hu Ya arrive, she rushed over: "Teacher Li, I only sent my child here because of you. Now my child is missing, you must find a way quickly..."

"Little Wang, don't worry. Aren't the police here? We're looking..." Old Zhou threw away his cigarette butt and stepped forward.

"What's the situation?" Hu Ya stared at Old Zhou...

"It's really bizarre. Just after a class, her child was still here. They left the gym like usual, but they just vanished into thin air..." Old Zhou wiped the sweat from his forehead and explained the situation.

Two more police officers came from the other side: "Captain Zhang, there are cameras at all the intersections. We've checked them separately, and we really didn't see this child passing by."

"The car?" The middle-aged police captain's face sank.

This was the most dreaded situation in a missing person case: the child was picked up by a car in a blind spot of the surveillance and taken away.

Vehicle traffic was high, and with even a slight delay, the trail would be lost in the vast sea of people.

"There are too many cars. We've already compiled the license plate numbers of all vehicles that passed through this area during this time period, but accurately determining their direction will take time."

"Investigate! No matter how long it takes, investigate!"

The young mother, surnamed Wang, grabbed Captain Zhang's hand: "Officers, you must help me find my son. If my son is gone, I... I really can't live, I..."

The scene became chaotic.

Lin Xiaosu gently patted Hu Ya's shoulder: "Isn't there a camera at the entrance of your martial arts gym? Can you show me the footage?"

"That... that can only capture about ten meters from the entrance, not here."

"It's okay, just turn it on and let me see..."

Hu Ya opened her phone and accessed the recording system. She adjusted the time back to an hour ago. Lin Xiaosu saw the boy she mentioned, wearing a blue hoodie, chubby and very cute.

Now that he knew who the child was, the rest would be easier...

Lin Xiaosu's eyes flickered slightly as he entered the "Reverse Time" system.

His heart skipped a beat. He saw...

The team around Captain Zhang had already descended into chaos. The woman surnamed Wang was kneeling, sobbing uncontrollably before Captain Zhang, showing clear signs of a breakdown.

Captain Zhang, though frustrated, couldn't lash out. He could only repeat, "Ms. Wang, we understand how important your child is to you. Please rest assured, we will do everything we can if there's even a sliver of hope. For now, please go home and wait..."

Ms. Wang cried, "Jiang Yang is gone, how can I go back? If I go back, my husband will beat me to death. I... I deserve to die. Why didn't I guard the door? I..."

Another female police officer taking notes hugged her, "Sister Wang, please don't be like this. Our people are already checking vehicles that passed by. As soon as we have any news, we will..."

Suddenly, a voice cut through the air, "Captain Zhang, you might be looking in the wrong direction."

It was Lin Xiaosu's voice.

He was standing in the gap between two buildings.

Everyone's gaze snapped to him, and countless brows furrowed simultaneously. Who was this guy?

Lin Xiaosu said, "This is a blind spot for surveillance. The child could have been taken into a car here, but it's also possible he didn't get into a car and instead went into this gap."

He pointed to the gap behind him.

The gap was narrow, with a tree and a large billboard in front of it.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" the female officer retorted. "This isn't an alley, it's just a gap, not even a meter wide. It's full of trash on the ground. Who would walk there?"

"Normally, no one would, but is this a normal situation?" Lin Xiaosu countered.

Hu Ya stepped forward, "What did you see?"

"There are footprints here that were just left. Like this officer said, normally, who would walk here? So, the fact that there are footprints is itself abnormal!" Lin Xiaosu stated.

The police officers exchanged glances. Captain Zhang strode over and stared in the direction Lin Xiaosu was pointing. Indeed, there was half a footprint there. "This is an adult's footprint, not a child's!"

"What if the child was carried by him?"

Captain Zhang froze.

"Ahem... To be honest, Captain Zhang, I'm from the mountains. I have a special skill where I can smell a person's scent. I can guarantee that this child was brought into this gap."

The female officer frowned, "Smell a scent? Are you a dog?"

Hu Ya looked bewildered. You have this skill? Why didn't I know?

Ms. Wang was inspired. "Officers, he's right! Why don't you bring a police dog to try? Aren't police dogs supposed to be the best trackers?"

"Sister Wang, you... you're deifying police dogs. In the city, police dogs are useless unless your child has a specific scent, like drugs..."

Lin Xiaosu had already entered the gap and was moving quickly. The gap soon ended, opening onto another street. Hu Ya emerged from behind him, "What are you up to? Since when can you smell things?"

Lin Xiaosu was speechless.

He clearly saw where the child had gone, but it was difficult to make others accept it.

He could cover his tracks with footprints and traces of movement when solving the case of the dead widow bathing, but how could he cover them here? This damn man got into a car directly, and the process was very covert. A beat-up van had just stopped at the opening of this gap. The door opened from the other side, the child was shoved into the car, and it drove away. Even if there were cameras opposite, they wouldn't have seen that action...

Theories about traces and footprints couldn't support a chain of pursuit in the city.

Only something as ethereal as scent could serve as a cover.

If dogs can do it, what's wrong with people doing it?

To prevent a family's sky from falling, to ensure Hu Ya's fighting gym could stay open, I'll risk it! I'll be a police dog!

"Hu Ya, bring your small car over. We'll follow this scent!"

"Okay!" Hu Ya turned to go back into the gap.

Suddenly, a voice came from the other side, "Get in, let's go together!"

It was a police car.

The female officer poked her head out the car window.

"You... didn't you not believe me?" Lin Xiaosu asked.

"I didn't say I believed you. It's just that the greatest advantage of being a police officer is not letting go of any possibility... Get in!"

The police car sped off, and Lin Xiaosu retraced the path...

"Left!"

"Right!"

"Straight ahead..."

Ahead was a construction site, half-finished and halted for some unknown reason. After a spring, the grass had grown quite deep.

Lin Xiaosu raised his hand, "Stop!"

The female officer stopped the car. The three of them got out and stood at the entrance of the construction site.

Hu Ya's eyes gleamed, "There are tire tracks here, and they're quite fresh."

"Where?" The female officer scanned the ground.

Hu Ya raised her hand and pointed to the ground, "This construction site has been shut down for over half a year. Not even ghosts have visited. Who would drive a car inside? Only a thief with ill intentions..."

Let's go!

Let's see...

The three of them tiptoed through the construction site, overgrown with grass and trees. Ahead were several warehouses. As they reached the entrance of a warehouse, the policewoman Zhou Mei's eyes lit up. She immediately spotted a van.

The van was very old, the kind nobody would want even if left by the roadside. Driving it into the abandoned construction site was suspicious enough, but the fact that it hadn't stopped outside the warehouse but had instead driven inside made it even more so.

Could it be that they were really going to crack this big case?

Her palms were sweating.

The three passed by the van. There was no one inside.

It was very dark behind them, and the hustle and bustle of the county town seemed completely cut off.

The footsteps of the three were kept very low. They rounded a few pillars, and ahead was a long corridor, already quite dim.

Suddenly, from a compartment along the side of the corridor, a figure flashed out.

The moment the figure appeared, Lin Xiaosu's gaze locked onto him. He clearly saw that this person was the one who had kidnapped the boy. However, this person's movements were extremely peculiar; in just a flash, he crossed five meters of space and appeared before them.

In his hand, he actually had a knife!

A black knife!

"Careful!" Lin Xiaosu shouted. His eyesight surpassed all others, but his hands and feet were those of an ordinary person. What his eyes saw would turn into slow motion, but the speed at which he could control his own limbs was even slower