You Can't Leave

"Sure thing!"

"Hehe, speaking of which, you public servants are really something. Unlike those cops I used to run into—they were always throwing their weight around and acting high and mighty."

"Enough chatter. Hurry up and call everyone back. I'm practically starving to death."

The workers resting on the salvage boats all spoke up, then called for their own boats to return so they could eat lunch.

They had been busy for half the day. Although they had found nothing, the physical effort they had expended was real enough, so as soon as several boats heard the calls, they all headed toward the shore.

At that moment, Wu Guodong gave one of them a look.

One of the police officers immediately understood. With a smile, he said, "Well, the food's here. I'm not waiting for you guys. I'm seriously hungry today, so I'll take one box first."

"Hey, just take them all."

Wu Guodong nodded in approval.

The other officers also stepped forward and took a boxed meal each before scattering in all directions...

But their "positions" had been carefully arranged. They appeared to be casually walking to various spots and starting their meals, but in reality, they had formed a faint encirclement.

Qi Zixiao knew about their arrangement, but had no intention of getting involved. She casually took a boxed meal and ran to the lakeside, facing the water as she opened it.

It was a simple meal of two meat dishes and one vegetable, all cooked in a huge pot. The taste could only be described as average...

"Smells great..."

She licked her lips, feeling her appetite open wide.

Instant noodles tasted pretty good, but eating too much of them really did get sickening...

Boxed meals might not have been anything special in modern times, but... Qi Zixiao had never eaten one before. Naturally, she found it quite decent when she tried it for the first time.

From another perspective, it had more of that warm, everyday atmosphere.

She had never eaten this kind of "normal" food before.

Qi Zixiao began shoveling food into her mouth.

The police officers were doing the same, but while they ate, their eyes kept watching their surroundings, especially Bearded Man...

Although Wu Guodong had told them not to stare too deliberately, now that they knew he might have a problem, how could they possibly not watch him?

It was rather like the Sharingan in Naruto... Everyone knew they shouldn't make eye contact, but how many people could really control themselves and keep from looking at the other person's eyes?

Since the boat Bearded Man was on was the farthest away, it was also the last one to reach shore.

"Whew, the sun's vicious today!"

"Who says it isn't? It's practically roasting me bald."

"If they weren't paying so much, I wouldn't have come!"

"I heard things aren't peaceful beneath this lake..."

Several shirtless "strongmen" chatted idly as they came ashore. Bearded Man walked at the very back, looking perfectly calm at first.

But after only a few steps, he realized something was wrong...

What exactly was wrong? He couldn't quite put it into words, but he had the distinct feeling that someone was watching him!

So Bearded Man slowed his pace and stayed at the back, frowning as his eyes swept over the police officers.

At first glance, there seemed to be nothing wrong.

They were scattered around, each eating the boxed meal in his hands.

But on closer inspection...

Bearded Man spotted the problem!

The police officers' "positions" were far too abnormal!

From his interactions with them over the past two days, he knew that these officers were fairly easygoing. Yet when they ate, they usually gathered in groups of two or three. They had never spread out into different positions like this...

"This feels just like... an encirclement!"

Bearded Man's heart jolted. Then, without the slightest hesitation, he turned and ran!

Damn! This guy's too cautious. He even noticed this?!

Wu Guodong cursed inwardly. At the same time, he threw away his boxed meal and charged forward. "Stop him!!!"

"Xiao Li! Stop him!!"

Bearded Man had chosen his direction carefully. Although there was a police officer "blocking" the way, there was a patch of woods in that direction. It wasn't particularly dense, but it was ideal for hiding. If he charged into it, catching him again would be difficult!

Splash!

The police officers all threw down their boxed meals and charged over. Xiao Li kept his eyes fixed on Bearded Man, his expression solemn and his body ready to strike at any moment.

Did they still need to investigate now?! Judging by Bearded Man's reaction alone, he definitely had something to hide!

"So fast!"

However, Wu Guodong and the others soon discovered another problem. Bearded Man was running so fast that they couldn't catch up at all!

Thus, all their hopes rested on "Xiao Li."

Xiao Li didn't hesitate. He took out a pair of handcuffs, locked one end around his own wrist, and then lunged at Bearded Man, who was already close.

However...

Bearded Man wasn't flustered in the slightest. Instead, he bared his teeth in a vicious grin. "Get lost!"

His shoulder sank abruptly, and then he slammed forward like a wild bull!

Bang!

With a muffled thud, Xiao Li didn't even have time to cry out before he was sent flying. He fell to the ground, grimacing in pain and completely unable to get back up.

"Not good!"

Wu Guodong knew things were bad. He immediately drew his gun, but Bearded Man had already reached the edge of the woods. He would be inside in the next second, and it was already too late.

"Damn it!"

Wu Guodong was furious. "Hurry! Contact headquarters and have them send people over immediately. Tell them we've found Qiu Shufeng. We have to catch him this time!"

"Also call an ambulance. Xiao Li's injured."

"Everyone else, follow me... Huh..."

Wu Guodong had only given half the order when he froze, standing there in a daze.

Because a seemingly frail figure was blocking the entrance to the woods...

"Lin Fan?!"

"Kid, move aside! You can't stop him!!!"

Wu Guodong was frantic.

Even Xiao Li, who had graduated from the armed police academy, had been sent flying in an instant. He had undergone professional training. What could a frail university student like Lin Fan do?

Wasn't he going to be killed on the spot?

However, "Lin Fan" completely ignored him.

She simply stood there, frowning slightly as she said, "You can't leave."

"Heh..."

Bearded Man didn't slow down. His eyes filled with disdain as he charged over like a savage bull.

"Stop!"

Qi Zixiao reached out.

At this moment, although she was using Lin Fan's body, the Waterflow Body made the skin finer and whiter than an ordinary woman's.

And since Lin Fan's frame wasn't particularly broad, he looked extremely thin and weak...

Run?!

Qi Zixiao was angry.

Where do you think you're running?!

I'm waiting for you to be arrested so I can collect the reward. And now you want to run? If you get away, won't my reward be gone?

If my reward disappears and I can't earn any money, won't that fellow look down on me even more?

If I only spend his money without earning any, won't I owe him a favor?

Thus, Qi Zixiao stopped eating and ran over to block the way.

And precisely because she had thrown away her boxed meal, Qi Zixiao was now... very angry.

"You're courting death!"

Bearded Man's sneer grew even more vicious. As he saw that they were about to collide, he still didn't slow down in the slightest, charging forward madly!

At this moment, Bearded Man wasn't worried at all. As a practitioner of martial arts, if he could be stopped by some pretty boy, he might as well quit the business altogether!

Happy Children's Day! Hope you have a wonderful holiday!