This had been a meticulously planned operation.
As early as last month, after the abducted college student Tong Xuan had been successfully rescued, the Yangcheng Public Security Bureau had begun preparing its Crackdown on Organized Crime targeting village tyrants.
Its reply to the Ganquan City Public Security Bureau at the time-"We have plans of our own"-had not been an excuse. It had been the truth.
Although Jiang Huizhen had barged in with her people, she had not substantially disrupted the overall plan. Everything had proceeded step by step, and the operation had been put into action after the Special Police Brigade was established.
Why had they chosen the twenty-third?
Because it was market day in Sitong Township. Villagers from the surrounding villages would head into town, and Changxing Village was no exception. Inevitably, that would leave fewer people in the village.
Moreover, a month had passed since the last "failed operation." The villagers had gradually let down their guard, and the roadblocks at the village entrance had been removed. Both factors favored this operation.
At nine that morning, a convoy of twelve police vehicles sped toward Changxing Village.
Along the way, quite a few villagers heading to the market saw the unprecedentedly large police convoy. The four riot-control vehicles at the rear, emblazoned with the words "Special Police," were particularly conspicuous.
"Turn back! Hurry, turn back!" Village Party Secretary Ma Changwei repeatedly urged his driver to turn the Santana around. From inside the car, he used his phone to tell those still in the village to prepare their defenses.
At eleven twenty that morning, the Yangcheng Public Security Bureau's convoy entered Changxing Village and headed straight for Ma Erli's home.
Nearly a hundred villagers, already alerted, resorted to their old tactics. To the clanging of a gong, they converged with