Buyer Caught, Snow Search

"Officer, I'm really not a poacher. I was just buying some animals, and I didn't even get them yet. Can you let me go?"

"Yeah, we didn't complete the transaction, so we shouldn't be breaking the law, right?"

"Officer, please be lenient. We promise we won't dare to do it again. Give us another chance."

Several buyers were crying injustice. They waited for the people they wanted to meet but instead got the police. The last person, with a pair of handcuffs on, still tried to argue his way out of the charges.

The police officers weren't swayed. "This is illegal acquisition, and it's also a crime! Those with serious offenses will still be sentenced!"

"The police won't wrongly arrest good people, and they won't let bad people go either. Just wait for notification."

Who knew if these people were repeat offenders? Perhaps they had bought and sold wild animals before.

According to these buyers, they had arranged a time to meet the poachers for the handover today. However, when the time came, they still hadn't seen anyone.

So, the poachers were likely still in the mountains.

In the deep mountains and old forests, especially in such harsh weather, searching for people wasn't an easy task.

The matter even alerted the local criminal investigation team, who dispatched personnel to help search the mountains and apprehend the poachers.

The teams were led by experienced veteran police officers.

It was winter, and with the heavy snowfall blocking the mountain passes, if the poachers really wanted to hide, it would be quite difficult to find these two people in the vast mountain range.

The police officers led black police dogs, wearing thick, warm uniforms. From a distance, they looked like brown bears, trudging laboriously through the snow, forming a unique landscape.

Even the most agile person would become somewhat clumsy when wearing so much clothing and walking in the snow.

"Sigh, searching like this is like finding a needle in a haystack. How are we supposed to find them? The mission difficulty is just too great."

"Maybe the poachers already know we're coming and have hidden in some obscure corner. Who could find them?"

"If the weather were better, it would be fine. This wind is like a knife."

As the police officers spoke, their breath plumed out, and the north wind rushed into their throats, taking away a lot of body heat.

Several young police officers, unable to withstand the cold and harsh weather, grumbled.

The veteran police officer, their captain, Sun Zhenbang, comforted them from the side, "Alright, say less and conserve your energy. Keep your spirits up."

Fortunately, the snow had stopped, but even so, the mountain paths were still difficult to navigate.

This mountain was completely undeveloped, in its most primitive state. The soft snow covered most of the difficult mountain paths. As long as one wasn't careless and stepped into a hole, there wasn't much danger.

Everyone walked, stepping deeply into the snow.

"Woof woof woof—"

The police dog's nose kept sniffing the snow. Suddenly, as if it had discovered something, it barked incessantly towards the northeast.

Sun Zhenbang was overjoyed. "Could it be that Er Hei and the others have found something?"

He quickly loosened Er Hei's leash. "Good boy, go and check for me."

Er Hei and the other police dogs immediately shot out like arrows released from a bow, quickly disappearing as small black dots into the vast expanse of snow.

Even an old horse knows the way, let alone these trained police dogs. So, Sun Zhenbang wasn't worried about Er Hei and the others getting lost.

Soon, Er Hei ran back, seemingly with something in its mouth.

Sun Zhenbang took it and his expression changed slightly. "Good heavens, it's a piece of wild animal fur."

"There's definitely something up ahead!"

Upon hearing this news, everyone's spirits lifted. Led by the police dogs, they soon discovered a dilapidated room.

"I heard from the forest ranger before that there was indeed a house on the mountain, but it was already abandoned. Could the poachers be hiding here?"

The police cautiously approached and entered one of the rooms. It turned out to be the very room where wild animals had been held. Inside, they found countless precious animal skins and some carcasses.

Sun Zhenbang felt a pang of regret. If they had discovered it earlier, perhaps these animals could have escaped.

"It seems this was the poachers' base camp before, but where did they go?"

"Could they have really received word and fled?"

It was evident that they had fled in a hurry, otherwise, they wouldn't have left these furs behind. Sun Zhenbang's gaze sharpened as if he had discovered something.

He quickly leaned closer and saw a damaged cage. The lock was intact, but a passage had been forcibly widened between two bars.

There were many claw marks and animal droppings inside the cage. Animals must have been held here before.

"Captain, come and see, there's something over here."

Just as Sun Zhenbang was examining it, a teammate called out from the next room. He hurried over.

Other police officers in another room found a burnt-out campfire and a pot. The red oil in the pot had frozen into blocks, and there were several empty wine bottles scattered around.

Furthermore, there was a fur coat hanging in the room, which should have belonged to the poachers.

All signs indicated that the poachers had been active here not long ago. Logically, they shouldn't have fled in such a hurry. What could have caused them to leave so hastily?

Sun Zhenbang was deep in thought when new discoveries were made outside.

The police dogs were digging at something in the snow, revealing a section of a human hand. The other police officers realized something was wrong and brought tools to help.

The two ice-covered corpses were quickly unearthed.

The mountain temperature was already low, and with the heavy snow from last night, both individuals had been frozen solid. Blue ice crystals clung to their bodies, allowing only their general outlines to be discerned.

"They're already dead."

If his guess was correct, these two should be the poachers.

This was also why the poachers hadn't met the buyer at the agreed-upon time. They weren't in hiding after receiving a tip-off; they were already dead.

But why had they died for no apparent reason?

Sun Zhenbang had a vague feeling that this matter was not simple. He immediately ordered the scene to be secured and arranged for the bodies to be transported down the mountain for autopsies.

Finding two living people was difficult, but finding two dead ones was simple. No one expected to find traces of the poachers so quickly.

Why were they dead? Could it be due to a dispute over the spoils, leading to a disagreement? Did they kill each other in a moment of accidental violence?

Currently, this possibility seemed quite high.

However, Sun Zhenbang recalled the damaged cages and the missing wild animals. Who had released them? Could there have been a third person present?

Various doubts surfaced in Sun Zhenbang's mind. Everything might only become clear after the autopsy results.

To get the report as soon as possible, Sun Zhenbang also submitted a report to his superiors, stating his intention to participate in the autopsy.

This had initially been just a poaching case, but if there were casualties, the nature of the incident would change significantly.