Chapter Summaries

After Zhou Quan completed a sweeping Police Force personnel reshuffle, he delegated most daily work to his trusted management team. A call from Secretary for Security Lok Ming-wah woke him before dawn, and Au Wing-yan left them privacy as Zhou Quan prepared to answer.

• Zhou Quan and the Police Force management completed a week-long selection process, and he signed the appointment warrants for the new personnel.
• Zhou Quan entrusted routine Police Force matters and operations against criminal organizations to his deputies, focusing instead on Hong Kong Island and international affairs.
• Half a month later, Lok Ming-wah called Zhou Quan at around five in the morning and woke him and Au Wing-yan.
• Au Wing-yan recognized that Lok Ming-wah's call might concern confidential government affairs and left to prepare breakfast while Zhou Quan answered.

Lok Ming-wah called Zhou Quan to ask for help after businessman Huo Zhaotang was kidnapped and his wife appealed to him privately. Zhou Quan recalled Huo’s recent personnel connections and resented being summoned through Mrs. Huo’s influence, leaving the request unresolved.

• Zhou Quan answered Lok Ming-wah’s call and offered to help if he could.
• Lok Ming-wah told Zhou Quan that Huo Zhaotang had been kidnapped from his Clearwater Bay villa, with the kidnappers demanding a billion in ransom.
• Lok Ming-wah explained that Huo’s wife had contacted him instead of reporting the kidnapping to the police.
• Zhou Quan recalled that the villa was in East Kowloon and connected Huo to officers whose recent assignments he had approved.
• Zhou Quan judged Huo and his wife harshly, comparing her attempt to enlist officials with Li Ka-shing’s respectful approach during an earlier kidnapping case.

Zhou Quan agreed to have the Police Force monitor Fok Siu-tong’s kidnapping case, but insisted that his family report it through normal channels. He planned to let Cheung Tak Biu and Yiu Kong-nga’s team prove themselves, leaving open the possibility that he would protect them if the operation went wrong.

• Zhou Quan rejected the idea of privately mobilizing the Police Force for Fok Siu-tong and told Lok Ming-wah to have the family file a report through the usual channels.
• Zhou Quan considered how official procedures could protect Cheung Tak Biu, Yiu Kong-nga, and their team if an operation led to a suspect’s death.
• Zhou Quan decided not to interfere too much in the kidnapping investigation, treating it as a chance for his men to demonstrate their abilities.
• Lok Ming-wah thanked Zhou Quan and agreed to contact Fok Siu-tong’s family so the case would proceed according to procedure.

Lok Ming-wah respected Zhou Quan’s authority and only alerted him to Fok Siu-tong’s kidnapping, while Mrs. Fok sought a direct police contact instead of following normal reporting procedures. Zhou Quan ordered He Wenzhan to mobilize TUI to investigate as East Kowloon officers began an emergency meeting.

• Lok Ming-wah called Zhou Quan about Fok Siu-tong’s kidnapping, then advised Mrs. Fok to report it through normal Police Force procedures.
• Mrs. Fok ignored Lok Ming-wah’s advice and used her connections to reach Situ Jie, East Kowloon Region’s Deputy Commander.
• Zhou Quan arrived at Police Force Headquarters and directed He Wenzhan to have TUI investigate possible underworld involvement and identify the East Kowloon team handling the case.
• He Wenzhan agreed to mobilize TUI’s intelligence network immediately.
• Situ Jie chaired an emergency meeting with East Kowloon Operations Department officers and the commanders of its two Regional Major Crimes Units.

Situ Jie assigned Cheung Tak Biu and Yuen Ka-bo to handle the kidnapping of Huo Zhaotang, president of Huo’s Bank, after Huo’s wife appealed to senior officials. Cheung Tak Biu questioned whether the regional reporting center had officially recorded the kidnapping.

• Cheung Tak Biu was poised to become commander of the East Kowloon Regional Major Crimes Unit, while Yiu Kong-nga’s promotion prospects depended on his advancement.
• Situ Jie briefed the officers that Huo Zhaotang had been kidnapped from his Clearwater Bay villa and that the kidnappers demanded a one-billion ransom within forty-eight hours.
• Situ Jie said Huo Zhaotang’s wife had contacted the Secretary for Security and that Zhou Quan was interested in the case.
• Situ Jie assigned the case to Cheung Tak Biu’s A Group and Yuen Ka-bo’s B Group because Yiu Yeuk-sing’s C Group was occupied with other cases.
• Cheung Tak Biu asked Situ Jie whether the regional reporting center had any official record of Huo Zhaotang’s kidnapping.

Cheung Tak Biu questioned the risks of carrying out an unrecorded kidnapping rescue at Situ Jie's request. Situ Jie assured him he would take responsibility and revealed he had signed an authorization document, though the operation would remain absent from Police Force records.

• Cheung Tak Biu recognized that the kidnapping operation lacked a formal report and could leave him and his men exposed to blame.
• Cheung Tak Biu challenged Situ Jie over whether he was willing to take responsibility for the secret rescue operation.
• Situ Jie explained that secrecy was needed to protect Huo Zhaotang and ensure the rescue went smoothly.
• Situ Jie considered Cheung Tak Biu's powerful connections and decided he could not afford to abandon him if the operation went wrong.
• Situ Jie told Cheung Tak Biu he had signed a document authorizing their actions, despite keeping the operation out of Police Force records.

Deputy Commissioner Situ Jie backed Cheung Tak Biu’s kidnapping investigation with a signed order, risking responsibility to build ties with senior officers. The team focused on Huo Zhaotang’s missing secretary and two triad suspects, Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan.

• Situ Jie committed himself to the operation, seeing it as a chance to advance his career and connections despite the risks.
• Cheung Tak Biu accepted Situ Jie’s support and suggested that Huo Zhaotang’s kidnapping involved an insider, pointing to his secretary as a person to investigate.
• Situ Jie revealed that the Intelligence Division had found the secretary had improper relations with Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan, and that all three had disappeared or become more cautious after Huo went missing.
• Tam Yu-hong handed Cheung Tak Biu and Yuen Ka-bo files on Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan for them to review.

Cheung Tak Biu took command of the investigation into Huo Zhaotang’s kidnapping, with orders to find results before the market opened Monday and rescue him within the golden seventy-two hours. After their superiors left, Yuen Ka-bo condemned the kidnappers and asked whether they should contact the officers in South New Territories.

• Situ Jie warned Cheung Tak Biu and Yuen Ka-bo that Huo Zhaotang’s influence and the approaching market opening made the kidnapping urgent.
• Situ Jie gave Cheung Tak Biu command of the case and authorization to conduct the ensuing operations, promising to shoulder any consequences.
• Cheung Tak Biu accepted the order, and Tam Yu-hong encouraged him as he prepared to lead the investigation.
• After Situ Jie and Tam Yu-hong left, Yuen Ka-bo called the kidnappers scumbags for crossing Kowloon Island to abduct someone.
• Yuen Ka-bo asked whether they should contact the lads in South New Territories.

Cheung Tak Biu organized a cross-regional operation to pursue the kidnapping suspects Wong Kwan and Ho Wai-lok, while seeking support from the Crouching Tiger system’s senior figures. Jing Jinxian warned him that the bosses above were watching his performance and provided contacts for intelligence and operational assistance.

• Cheung Tak Biu ordered Yuen Ka-bo to arm the team and said he would coordinate with the South New Territories.
• Yuen Ka-bo took Cheung Chung-bong and Yiu Kong-nga to gather weapons and equipment while Cheung Tak Biu contacted Jing Jinxian.
• Jing Jinxian told Cheung Tak Biu that the bosses above were watching his performance but did not disclose why they were following the kidnapping case.
• Jing Jinxian promised to fax Cheung Tak Biu the suspects’ files and directed him to Laughing for intelligence tracking and Brother Jun for operational support.

Cheung Tak Biu received intelligence and regional support for the rescue operation targeting Huo Zhaotang’s kidnappers. He led an elite team toward Kwai Chung Wan Li Street, where the suspects were located at a nightclub.

• Jing Jinxian gave Cheung Tak Biu detailed intelligence on gangsters Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan and arranged backup from South New Territories.
• Cheung Tak Biu thanked Jing Jinxian, received the files, and formally launched the rescue operation at East Kowloon Headquarters.
• Yuen Ka-bo prepared equipment and briefed the two Anti-Triad Unit teams as Cheung Tak Biu issued orders to move out.
• Fourteen East Kowloon CID officers boarded four armoured vehicles and headed for Wan Li Street with the detailed intelligence.
• Cheung Tak Biu contacted the South New Territories communications channel, and Leung Siu-tong reported that the suspects were at Jama Nightclub.

Cheung Tak Biu’s East Kowloon Major Crimes Unit headed to Wan Li Street in Kwai Chung to surveil Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan without endangering their hostage, Huo Zhaotang. With help from Leung Siu-tong, the team took up positions around Jama Nightclub and began the operation.

• Cheung Tak Biu contacted Leung Siu-tong to request a temporary surveillance post near Jama Nightclub.
• Leung Siu-tong directed Cheung Tak Biu’s team to use Shanghai Hair Salon, whose storeroom overlooked the nightclub entrance.
• Cheung Tak Biu thanked Leung Siu-tong and promised to host him and the Intelligence Bureau officers at Be Proud Restaurant.
• Cheung Tak Biu assigned the East Kowloon officers positions at both ends of Wan Li Street and outside Jama Nightclub.
• Cheung Tak Biu led senior officers to the surveillance post while the rest of the team dispersed along the street.

Cheung Tak Biu and the East Kowloon Major Crimes Unit launched an operation to arrest Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan and learn where Huo Zhaotang was being held. Cheung's team captured Ho Wai-lok on Tsing Yi Bridge, leaving his interrogation and Wong Kwan's arrest still to come.

• Dai Zhuoxian spotted Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan leaving Jama Nightclub, and Cheung Tak Biu ordered the teams to follow and arrest them.
• Cheung Tak Biu's team tailed Ho Wai-lok onto Tsing Yi Bridge as rain and sparse traffic created a chance to stop him.
• Mok Yik-chuen overtook Ho Wai-lok and slowed him while Yiu Kong-nga's vehicle drew alongside, blocking his escape.
• Ho Wai-lok tried to reverse away, but the two Stealth Armoured Vehicles rammed his car at low speed and pinned it in place.
• Cheung Tak Biu and the officers arrested Ho Wai-lok, who denied wrongdoing and claimed they had no reason to detain him.
• Cheung Tak Biu ordered Yiu Kong-nga to put Ho Wai-lok in the car so they could interrogate him about Huo Zhaotang's location.

Cheung Tak Biu’s team arrested Ho Wai-lok and continued toward Tsing Yi Island to interrogate him. Cheung secured a National Security Department safe house from Jing Jinxian and directed the team to No. 36 Warehouse on Cheung Fai Road.

• Yiu Kong-nga dragged Ho Wai-lok from his car, and Mok Yik-chuen’s men forced him into a Stealth Armoured Vehicle.
• Cheung Tak Biu ordered the convoy to cross Tsing Yi Bridge while the team guarded Ho Wai-lok.
• Cheung Tak Biu called Jing Jinxian and requested a safe house for the interrogation.
• Jing Jinxian assigned the team the unused safe house at No. 36 Warehouse on Cheung Fai Road.
• Cheung Tak Biu told Mok Yik-chuen to hurry to the warehouse, and the damaged convoy sped through the rain.

Cheung Tak Biu brought Ho Wai-lok to a safe house and interrogated him about the kidnapped Huo Zhaotang, but Ho refused to answer. Cheung and Yiu Kong-nga prepared the infamous Judicial Milk Tea to pressure him into talking.

• Cheung Tak Biu and the other officers took Ho Wai-lok into a safe house and cuffed him to a chair.
• Cheung asked Ho where Huo Zhaotang was, but Ho denied knowing anything about him or the hostage.
• Cheung kicked Ho and ordered the officers to remove his shoes, then Chiu Chi-keung struck Ho's soles with handcuffs while questioning him.
• Ho continued to deny the kidnapping and threatened to file a complaint, so Cheung stopped Chiu Chi-keung and warned Ho that he had hours to talk.
• Cheung handed his coffee milk tea to Yiu Kong-nga, who cut Ho's mohawk and mixed the hair into the drink to make Judicial Milk Tea.

Cheung Tak Biu forced Ho Wai-lok to drink judicial milk tea, and Ho finally confessed that Huo Zhaotang was being held at 143 Wan Li Street. As Cheung arranged a rescue, Yuen Ka-bo reported that Wong Kwan’s arrest had failed, leaving the hostage’s safety in greater danger.

• Cheung Tak Biu and his men forced Ho Wai-lok to swallow judicial milk tea, and Ho panicked and revealed Huo Zhaotang’s location at 143 Wan Li Street.
• Cheung ordered Yiu Kong-nga to make Ho swallow cotton to reduce the danger from the milk tea’s hair fragments.
• Cheung prepared to call Yuen Ka-bo to coordinate a rescue because his team was far from Wan Li Street.
• Cheung stopped Chiu Chi-keung from further abusing Ho after Ho had confessed.
• Yuen Ka-bo told Cheung that B Group had failed to hold Wong Kwan after his underlings contacted a barrister.
• Cheung feared Wong Kwan’s loyalists might kill Huo Zhaotang to eliminate evidence and help Wong escape the law.

Cheung Tak Biu sent Yuen Ka-bo and B Group to rescue Huo Zhaotang, then warned his men to uphold a moral line as police officers. Yuen later reported that Huo Zhaotang was safe, easing the tension at the Safe House.

• Cheung Tak Biu ordered Yuen Ka-bo and B Group to rescue Huo Zhaotang at 143 Wan Li Street and authorized them to use their guns while protecting him.
• Yuen Ka-bo and Cheung Chung-bong rushed to the rescue with the team as Cheung Tak Biu waited for news.
• Cheung Tak Biu told Chiu Chi-keung, Yiu Kong-nga, and Mok Yik-chuen to stay within a moral bottom line and honor their police badges.
• Yuen Ka-bo called and told Cheung Tak Biu that the operation had gone smoothly and Huo Zhaotang was safe.

Closed-door proceedings began over Huo Zhaotang’s kidnapping and Ho Wai-lok’s lawsuit against Cheung Tak Biu and the East Kowloon Major Crimes Unit. Wong Kwan and Ho Wai-lok denied guilt, while the court focused on whether the recording implicating Ho Wai-lok was admissible.

• Chief Justice Au Hin-wai opened the closed-door hearing concerning Huo Zhaotang’s kidnapping and Ho Wai-lok’s claims of police violence.
• Wong Kwan pleaded not guilty and relied on his belief that Ho Wai-lok would not implicate him.
• The prosecutor confronted Ho Wai-lok with a recording in which he revealed where Huo Zhaotang was held.
• Ho Wai-lok denied knowing the location and argued that the recording was inadmissible without video and proper evidence-gathering procedures.
• Ho Wai-lok accused the East Kowloon Major Crimes Unit of forcing him to speak, but Au Hin-wai ordered him to focus on the kidnapping case.
• Cheung Tak Biu and the other officers became involved because the court had to examine the recording’s integrity and the evidence against Ho Wai-lok.

The court proceedings aimed to establish Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan’s guilt, but Huo Zhaotang surprised East Kowloon Regional Headquarters by claiming he could not identify his kidnappers. Situ Jie accused Huo of making excuses before presiding judge Au Hin-wai restored order.

• The chapter explained that Cheung Tak Biu and his men faced limited prospects of conviction for torture because the recording contained no proof of their methods and Ho Wai-lok had no corroborating injuries.
• The prosecutor asked Huo Zhaotang whether Wong Kwan and Ho Wai-lok had participated in his kidnapping.
• Huo Zhaotang testified that he had been blindfolded and did not know who had kidnapped him.
• Situ Jie challenged Huo, arguing that his account was an excuse for the suspects and that the circumstances suggested he knew more than he claimed.
• Presiding judge Au Hin-wai struck the gavel and ordered Situ Jie to control his emotions and stop interrupting.

At Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan’s trial, the prosecution revealed that it had prepared evidence beyond the disputed recording, including testimony from Huo Zhaotang’s missing secretary. Her appearance rattled Wong Kwan and exposed his involvement, while Huo Zhaotang reacted with visible alarm.

• Presiding Judge Au Hin-wai urged the prosecution to present any remaining evidence before he ruled on Ho Wai-lok and Wong Kwan.
• Superintendent Jing Jinxian and the Department of Justice prosecutor remained calm, having prepared evidence with the backing of senior Police Force and Justice officials.
• The prosecutor asked to present evidence, and Presiding Judge Au Hin-wai granted permission.
• The prosecutor played a video in which Huo Zhaotang’s missing female secretary described how she, Ho Wai-lok, and Wong Kwan conspired to kidnap him and admitted her role.
• Wong Kwan panicked and blurted out that he had arranged for the secretary to be smuggled out, while Huo Zhaotang stared at the video in alarm.

At Wong Kwan and Ho Wai-lok’s trial, the prosecution presented evidence of their kidnapping, drug dealing, and Triad crimes, while Jing Jinxian exposed Huo Zhaotang’s false testimony. The jury found Wong Kwan and Ho Wai-lok guilty, and the judge sentenced them to life imprisonment.

• The prosecutor revealed that Wong Kwan’s female secretary had returned to Hong Kong Island and was available to testify, then presented evidence of the defendants’ drug dealing and Triad crimes.
• Jing Jinxian accused Huo Zhaotang of perjury and asked the judge to have him arrested in court.
• The District Presiding Judge approved the request, and court officers arrested Huo Zhaotang for giving false testimony.
• The jury unanimously found Wong Kwan and Ho Wai-lok guilty of kidnapping, drug trafficking, Triad activity, and other charges.
• The District Presiding Judge sentenced Wong Kwan and Ho Wai-lok to life imprisonment.