Chapter 1860 - 2052: Settling Grievances (1)

Night fell.

Outside a cluster of old apartment blocks in the North City District of Beijing, Ling Chen stood on the rooftop of a tall building, holding binoculars and watching the three-story building opposite. According to the intel, Su Cheng’en and Su He were living on the third floor of that old building. To prevent them from relocating, Ling Chen had led everyone over early, spreading out around the area to covertly monitor what was happening inside.

From the morning until now, apart from a food delivery guy showing up, Su Cheng’en and Su He had stayed holed up inside, not taking a single step out.

As night gradually fell, lights flickered on in the surrounding buildings. Glancing at the environment around them, Ling Chen felt a bit of a headache. Su Cheng’en and Su He hadn’t just picked any random place to crash; they had chosen this spot for a reason. This whole area was basically made up of rental units, a complete jumble of all sorts of people, with a complicated layout, crisscrossed by narrow alleys. If they were attacked, Su Cheng’en and the others could use the environment to slip away quickly. Not only that, there were people everywhere; if they couldn’t get away, they could grab hostages at any time.

As he was thinking, footsteps came from behind him. Ling Chen turned his head and saw Ling Gengqiu slowly walking over. "Bro, did you find anything on your side?" he asked.

"No." Ling Gengqiu shook his head. "They’re very cautious. The doors and windows in the back are all covered with curtains; you can’t see what’s going on inside."

"Bro, I checked the surroundings. It’s going to be hard to make a move," Ling Chen said, frowning. "Even if we have enough people to seal off this whole area, you’re the only one who can handle Su Cheng’en."

"I’ve already thought about everything you just said. At a time like this, there’s no need to overthink it. We go in hard, end the fight in the shortest time possible, and try not to affect the surrounding residents."

"Go in hard? Is that... really going to work?"

"We’ll only know if we try. You notify the others, have them take their positions, and wait for my signal. Then we all rush in together."

"Alright then." Ling Chen nodded, picked up the walkie-talkie, and relayed the orders. After arranging the deployment of the nearby personnel, he followed Ling Gengqiu down to the base of the old building. Moving up the stairs, the two slowed their steps and quietly made their way to the third floor. Standing in front of the door, so close they could almost reach out and touch it, Ling Gengqiu signaled to Ling Chen, then pressed himself up against the door. The lights were on inside, but not a sound could be heard.

After a brief silence, Ling Gengqiu didn’t hesitate. He kicked the door open in one go and rushed in. At the same time, a series of crashes—glass shattering—came from inside the room. The moment Ling Gengqiu made his move, Chen Junfeng and Yu Beifeng, who had been lying in ambush on the other side of the building, broke through the windows and entered.

Once inside, Ling Chen swept his gaze around, checking the interior. But to everyone’s surprise, the room was completely empty.

That’s impossible!

Su Cheng’en and Su He were clearly living in this unit. They had confirmed it several times; there was no way they had the wrong place. And when the delivery guy had come earlier, someone had taken the food. From morning till night, no one had left this place.

Frowning, Ling Gengqiu said nothing as he searched every corner of the apartment inside and out. Before long, they found a hole under the living room sofa—a passage leading straight down into the room on the second floor.

So that’s it... In an instant, it all clicked for Ling Chen. Su Cheng’en and Su He had likely rented both the second- and third-floor units stacked on top of each other, then dug a hole through the floor to connect them. They always entered and exited via the third-floor unit, creating the illusion that they were living there, when in reality, they had been hiding on the second floor the whole time.

"I’ll go down first." With that, Ling Gengqiu couldn’t wait any longer; he jumped down into the second-floor unit. Sure enough, the takeout containers were still on the living room coffee table, and there was a cup beside them, the tea inside still steaming hot. But there wasn’t a single person in sight. They must have noticed when the team breached the third-floor unit and had slipped away in an instant.

"Hey! Big Bro, Su Cheng’en and the others have escaped. Keep your eyes open and see if you can spot any trace of them." Ling Chen used the walkie-talkie to contact Qiu Yong and the rest. Only the four of them had moved in just now; the others were still guarding the perimeter to prevent Su Cheng’en and Su He from escaping.

"Ling Cheng, we’re watching all the exits in this area. So far we haven’t seen any sign of them. They might still be hiding inside somewhere. Be careful—you don’t want them ambushing you."

"Got it!"

"We split up," Ling Gengqiu said in a low voice. "They shouldn’t be able to get far." With that, he kicked open the door and strode out. Ling Chen gave a couple of quick instructions to Chen Junfeng and Yu Beifeng, then hurried after Ling Gengqiu. Even though Su He was badly injured, Su Cheng’en’s strength was no joke. It was still safer to move in pairs.

This area wasn’t exactly big, but it wasn’t small either. For four people to thoroughly search every corner of it was no easy task.

"Fatty, do you copy?"

"I’m here."

"Su Cheng’en and the others ran. I’m short-handed over here; I’ll need your help."

"No problem. I’ll be on it right away."

In no time, a buzzing sound drifted down from above Ling Chen’s head. Looking up, he saw several drones flying overhead, sweeping the nearby streets and alleys. With the drones’ help, if Su Cheng’en and Su He were hiding on the rooftop of that building, they would definitely be spotted.

More than ten minutes passed. Ling Chen and the other three had already combed through every street and alley in the area several times, but still found no trace of Su Cheng’en and Su He. On top of that, Qiu Yong and the others hadn’t seen them leave either. The area was surrounded by main roads on all four sides; anyone trying to get out would have to cross one of those streets. With so many people watching the perimeter, there was no way they could have missed them.

After the four regrouped, Ling Gengqiu said, "Most likely they’ve slipped into one of the residents’ apartments."

"Then what do we do?" Ling Chen asked. If that was the case, things got tricky. There were at least several hundred households in this area. Who knew which one they were hiding in? They couldn’t just search door to door; not only would it waste time, they didn’t have the authority. If someone called the cops on them for breaking into private homes, they’d be in serious trouble.

Ling Gengqiu didn’t say anything. Under these circumstances, he probably didn’t have a better solution either. After thinking it over, Ling Chen hesitated for a moment and said, "How about we ask someone for help?"

"Ask who?"

"A friend of mine. She might be able to help us out."

Seeing Ling Gengqiu nod his assent, Ling Chen immediately pulled out his phone and dialed a number. Not long after, a police car drove in from the main road outside and pulled up right in front of Ling Chen.