Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 270 On-site Interrogation (5K)

'Crash...'

The gushing fire hose washed over Cai Yuan, the intense impact causing him to wince in pain. But compared to the terror of being submerged in hydrochloric acid and the despair of being caught by the police, this icy, bone-chilling sensation actually brought him a sense of happiness.

But at the same time, the menacing eyes behind him terrified him more than the cold water droplets. If he could turn back time, he swore he would never have run this way, and he would never have trusted that incompetent fool Zhou Guangjun again.

How he wished that his fleeting happiness could become eternal.

Unfortunately, just as Zhai Xiaojun waved to signal the sluice gate to be closed and the fire-fighting water turned into tiny raindrops, Cai Yuan's consciousness returned to reality. He opened his eyes again, looked at the group of burly, ferocious men around him, and a look of pain and regret appeared on his face.

Damn, how did they even get caught?

Unlike Zhou Guangjun's escape method, Cai Yuan found his hiding place online by consulting professionals at great expense. The result? He spent money and tried the method, but it didn't work. Cai Yuan felt like killing the swindler on the other end of the internet.

"Tell me your name, identity, and what you've done? Hurry up, or you'll catch a cold."

Zhai Xiaojun squatted down in front of Cai Yuan, staring at the shocking suspect who was only wearing underwear. The temperature in December was already quite low, the wind was strong, and he was soaking wet; if he didn't put on some clothes quickly, he might freeze to death.

“Cai…Cai Yuan…Yunjie Taxi General Manager…I…I didn’t do…I didn’t do anything, I didn’t do anything at all…Why are you arresting me?”

Cai Yuan answered Zhai Xiaojun's question with trembling hands.

Facing this seemingly refined-looking, bespectacled, scoundrel of a policeman, he felt a chill run down his spine. The guy spoke politely, but why was his tone so intimidating?

"Never done it? Why run if you haven't committed any crime? Besides, hiding in a place like this is quite risky, isn't it? Who came up with this idea? What if your accomplice brought in a little extra hydrochloric acid? Wouldn't that kill you outright? Look at you now, do you really think anyone would be 100% loyal to you?"

Zhai Xiaojun wasn't angry. He smirked and tapped Cai Yuan twice with his baton. He had many ways to get rid of this stubborn guy.

Cai Yuan carefully avoided Zhai Xiaojun's harassment.

Even though he knew this bastard cop was trying to sow discord between him and Zhou Guangjun, how could Cai Yuan not consider that possibility when things came to this? They both had dirt on each other; what if that bastard couldn't withstand the police interrogation and decided to expose them for personal gain…

Of course, he wouldn't give in easily anytime soon. At least for now, Cai Yuan remembered the advice he'd paid for from his senior: even if he were to turn himself in, he should at least offer himself a higher price and negotiate a reasonable offer first.

Zhai Xiaojun quickly and accurately captured this expression of compromise mixed with stubbornness.

"then!"

Zhai Xiaojun's men took an old blanket from the car; it smelled strongly of foot odor and sweat.

This is something that criminal police officers often carry when they're out staking out people all night. It hadn't been washed or dried for a long time, so the smell was a bit awful. Even the officer who owned it was a little disgusted with it, tossing it at Cai Yuan from a distance, almost causing it to fall into the water.

"Wrap yourself up, don't freeze to death."

Zhai Xiaojun gave a friendly smile, which warmed Cai Yuan, who was awkwardly accepting the blanket, and made him feel a little bit of the warmth that belonged to the law enforcement agency.

"Thank... thank you, government..."

Shivering from the cold, Cai Yuan quickly wrapped himself in a blanket and bowed and scraped, which caused a glint of light to flash behind Zhai Xiaojun's glasses.

This thing's facial recognition shouldn't have a criminal record...

But he remained expressionless, simply waving his hand to have his men politely handcuff Cai Yuan and help him walk towards the warm police car.

"Tch! A weasel paying New Year's greetings to a chicken!"

Shao Yongkang snorted coldly from afar, knowing that Zhai Xiaojun was not far from breaking down that good-for-nothing's psychological defenses. Unfortunately, he couldn't handle Zhai Xiaojun's psychological tricks, so he could only turn away and return to his gang.

"Boss, are we only left with scraps of soup and water?"

Quan Chenghai was extremely unwilling. He tucked his hat under his arm and rubbed his bald head, saying unhappily, "We went through all that trouble, and all we got were a few thugs. Did we just come here to clean up the mess for Yangdian New District? It's one thing to not get the credit, but are we really going to let the Second Squad do the interrogation too? Damn it, do you think Yangdian is colluding with the Second Squad to deliberately trip us up? It was such a simple thing that we could have captured them all at once, but the Second Squad got all the benefits."

"What a joke! This isn't over yet! We're investigating a case involving the smuggling of prohibited drugs. What's the point of just catching a few scoundrels? The real culprit behind this is far from being exposed!"

Shao Yongkang was not discouraged; in fact, he had already considered more possibilities even at this point. Zhou Guangjun and Cai Yuan were merely ordinary links in this smuggling chain, not important figures at all.

Even the most important gain from this trip is not these suspects; what they smuggled or hid was the real purpose of today's trip.

With ambition gleaming in his eyes, Shao Yongkang waved his hand and returned to the logistics company. He signaled his men to drag out all the arrested suspects again, and the group gathered at the entrance of Zhou Guangjun and Cai Yuan's logistics company, ready to conduct a thorough search inside.

Lingo and his police dogs were naturally among the team on duty.

Although most of the suspects have been apprehended, the police dog unit will still need to continue its work in finding evidence and searching for more clues. In particular, the police dog unit will be responsible for alerting suspects to any unusual situations encountered during the search, such as toxic or hazardous traps.

"Will they work?"

Even with the help of Lingo and his police dogs, and having witnessed firsthand their role in apprehending fugitives, the scoundrels in the First Squadron still harbored some doubts about the police dogs' primary search capabilities.

In the past two years, the police dog squadron has not shown any commendable achievements in this regard.

Li Mei's police dog squad has been ridiculed behind her back as a mascot squad. The two police dogs, in particular, with their unusual breeds, have been the subject of much discussion, with many feeling that Li Mei lacks even the ability to select dogs properly.

"hateful!"

Hearing such doubts, Zhou Bo's expression turned sour.

As a member of the police dog squadron and as a quirky handler, Zhou Bo could usually ignore the ridicule. But when his quirky dog ​​was clearly working diligently and still faced criticism, Zhou Bo couldn't hold back anymore.

"Just bear with it! Everyone will see that our police dog squad is not a useless squad."

Yu Rong whispered words of comfort to Zhou Bo, while clenching her fists. She had joined the police dog unit after Qian Wei and Xie Lili left. She knew something about the unit's reputation. She just hadn't expected hearing these behind-the-scenes criticisms while working to be so painful. Besides silently cursing them for arguing with these rude bastards, Yu Rong could only pat the quiet heads beside her, urging them to show their skills.

"..."

Yuan Qu remained silent, simply watching as Ying Xiongxiong followed Lin Ge into the Yunjie Logistics Company.

As a sizable logistics company in Zhangzhou, Yunjie Logistics boasts a fleet of two heavy-duty trucks, four medium-duty trucks, and two special-purpose vehicles, along with two freight logistics transit warehouses and a small taxi company. In this respect, Zhou Guangjun and Cai Yuan's wealth is actually quite substantial. Even without engaging in illegal activities, earning seven or eight figures a year would be effortless for them.

However, with the rise and consolidation of large logistics companies in the past two years, private companies like theirs have gradually seen their business decline. Furthermore, trucks are consumables; they depreciate while on the road, and are a pure loss when not in operation. Meanwhile, taxi companies have also been impacted by ride-hailing services, gradually becoming unprofitable. Therefore, despite Yunjie Logistics' considerable size and fifty to sixty employees, their sources of income are dwindling, leading these two men to resort to shady methods. How they connected with the smuggling ring is still unclear to the municipal bureau. But finding out the truth is only a matter of time.

“If you confess, you will be treated with leniency, if you resist, you will be treated with severity.”

Shao Yongkang, with his legs crossed, stared at the row of suspects in front of him, handcuffed and held by criminal police officers behind them, and said, "You all know how it feels to finally escape and then be caught again, right? Unfortunately, criminals can never escape the clutches of the police! Hehe... But there's some good news, we haven't gone to the station yet, and we haven't started taking notes, right? If you confess now, I'll consider it a voluntary surrender!"

The dozen or so people looked at each other and exchanged glances, all of them somewhat tempted.

After all, a secret is only a secret if it is known to one person. If many criminal facts that one's own group is aware of are revealed by others, then that opportunity is wasted.

"Reporting to the government, I am reporting this!"

The smartest guy raised his hand first, and his opening remarks sounded like he was about to return to the palace.

Just hearing the words "report and expose" was enough for Shao Yongkang to know that this guy's last crime was also committed by a gang.

"Hehe... there was even a catfish hidden there." Shao Yongkang chuckled but remained silent.

"Report, I also confess!"

"Officer, I know something they don't!"

"Me too! I want to report this too!"

"Report……"

A catfish stirs up a pool of muddy water; better to die than to die. Before the first guy could reveal the secret he knew that others might or might not, the other disloyal bastards couldn't hold back any longer and quickly surrendered, afraid of being left behind.

Soon, they confessed to all the illegal and criminal acts committed by Yunjie Logistics, one by one.

Even while searching for evidence based on these statements, Lin Ge unexpectedly discovered a bloodstained cleaver hidden in a heating pipe and a bloodstained garment hidden in the bathroom ceiling, raising the level of the case to another level.

In another room next door, Zhou Guangjun, who was being stared at by Huang Yizhong and Wang Liqun, looked ashen-faced.

As his subordinates reported various crimes, including organized crime, brawls, robbery, and intentional assault, and when he saw the various controlled knives and bloodstained jackets found throughout the company by the police dogs and the cat, he knew he was completely finished.

There is absolutely no way I can avoid this imprisonment.

However, this was not what Shao Yongkang wanted. Or rather, his initial goal of coming to this godforsaken place today, making such a huge mess, and not knowing how to explain it back home, has yet to yield any clues or evidence!

Even if so many people are arrested, as long as the evidence of smuggling and the entire route are not fully understood, this trip cannot be considered a success.

Yeah, Yang Ye will kill me when I get back.

Shao Yongkang knew very well that Deputy Director Yang was very unhappy with him, and there were many reasons for it.

Seeing that none of these people knew anything about the 'smart drug' after talking for so long, Shao Yongkang immediately realized that his opponent was more cautious than he had imagined, and that the complexity of this case would be much more difficult than he had thought.

To solve the case quickly, we need to get these two guys to talk and find the key evidence.

"Tell me?"

Shao Yongkang approached Zhou Guangjun, looking down at him. Seeing that the man remained silent, he said in a deep voice, "Cai Yuan has been arrested. Do you think he will help you keep this a secret? Or do you think he might frame you for all the crimes to clear his own name?"

"I want to see a lawyer!"

After a moment of silence, Zhou Guangjun spoke softly.

"lawyer?"

Shao Yongkang was stunned for a moment, as were Huang Yizhong and Wang Liqun behind Zhou Guangjun.

This is a criminal case, man. What the hell is a lawyer?

Has this guy watched too many TV dramas? Does he really think lawyers are so powerful and above the authority of the law or law enforcement agencies?

The kind of unscrupulous lawyers who take money to overturn convictions and exonerate suspects, as depicted in movies and novels, is simply impossible in China. Even in the real world and online, many high-profile cases attract skepticism, with some questioning police framing and alleged misconduct. There are even those who cite online claims by suspects' families that their hired lawyers were refused by the police, that the police forbade the suspects from hiring lawyers, or that they were assigned incompetent lawyers—all sorts of speculation and doubts—questioning the police's handling of the case and interrogation process. Even if the police produce a statement signed by the suspect themselves, it's often interpreted as a forced confession, with the assumption that the police are at fault for recanting their testimony.

But in fact, anyone familiar with police investigation procedures knows that all of this is nonsense.

Surely no one really thinks that taking a statement is just the police writing down the details of the crime and then forcing the suspect to sign it, right?

In special criminal cases, surely no one really believes that the suspect's confession recorded in the file is only a few hundred words long, as the police report to the public? As for recanting a confession, that's even more ridiculous. Recruiting a confession is the suspect's right, but it is not proof that the police have done something wrong.

While domestic laws may still have various problems, at least these basic procedures and enforcement rules cannot be treated perfunctorily.

Speaking of lawyers, when did lawyers become qualified to participate in police investigations in China? When did lawyers become capable of replacing the work of the procuratorate, questioning the police's investigative approaches and processes, and even obstructing police investigations?

The Public Security Bureau, the Procuratorate, and the Court are the three pillars of the national legal system. Where are lawyers going to gather from beginning to end?

The only thing a lawyer can do is to question the evidence submitted by the police and the prosecution during the court hearing, or to submit arguments in accordance with the law to plead for a lenient sentence when the judge pronounces the verdict, and so on.

As for the online suspicions that the police framed someone, to be honest, if this police officer really had the ability to handle the prosecutor's office and the court together, then to put it more bluntly, this case would never have been exposed online!
Compared to the difficulty of both, internet censorship is actually simpler.

Therefore, in many cases, the legal profession has little presence in criminal cases, especially for criminal suspects.

When Zhou Guangjun said he wanted to see a lawyer, Shao Yongkang was immediately amused.

Even though he wasn't as calculating as Zhai Xiaojun, he could still tell from this guy's words that Zhou Guangjun didn't have any deeper trump cards and was just putting up a last-ditch resistance without being asked.

For guys like that, just let them see irrefutable evidence with their own eyes, and they'll naturally shut up.

"Mimi, please help me out again!"

Shao Yongkang turned to the police dog squad and, ignoring Zhou Bo who came up to greet him, went straight to Lin Ge and said, "Remember what we came here for? We've caught the people, but we haven't found the stuff yet. Take your guys and help me search this place? As long as we can find the 'smart drugs' they're smuggling, this case will be closed. And considering all the other shady things they reported, I think we can at least get a couple of peanuts out of the system."

"The nature of this is really that bad?"

The lazy Lin Ge looked up in astonishment. How could a mere gang of criminals manage to get two or three people sentenced to death? Just how corrupt were these guys? Was this still the Ping'an Zhang City that Nie Guoqiang had described?
"The technical investigation department just sent me a message that smart drugs have been officially identified as prohibited drugs."

Shao Yongkang grinned, revealing a set of menacing white teeth, and winked at Lin Ge, saying, "If we're slow, the anti-drug squad will come running. Mimi, this case deserves at least two third-class merits! You don't want to share this credit, do you?"

"Pah! It's clearly you who wanted to eat it all by yourself!"

Lin Ge glared at Shao Yongkang, but quickly stood up. After all, the case involved drugs, and its nature had completely changed. 'Smart drugs' and 'drugs' were mixed together; if it wasn't stopped immediately, who knew what serious consequences it would have for the victimized children.

"Ow!"

With a shout, Lin Ge summoned his henchmen, and led six police dogs to begin a second search of the sizable company.

Even if he didn't know what a 'smart drug' should smell like, or even what it looked like, as long as this unsafe substance existed in this place, Lingo felt he could definitely find it.

This time, Lin Ge worked even more diligently than the first time, checking every detail more thoroughly. Sure enough, he soon discovered unusual traces on a shelf deep inside the warehouse, specifically for storing 'Brain Gold'.

It was clearly just a common health supplement called Brain Gold, advertised in advertisements, with perfectly normal packaging. Even by smell alone, there was nothing unusual about the shipment. However, the abundance of traces belonging to Zhou Guangjun in the surrounding area made Lin Ge suspect that he must have taken a great deal of care into this shipment.

Lin Ge didn't believe there were no problems.

Without hesitation, Lin Ge let out a shout and summoned the criminal police officers following behind him.

At Ling Ge's signal, the detectives did not hesitate to open the box labeled "Brain Gold".

The first few dozen boxes I opened were all fine; they were indeed genuine Brain Gold. However, the problem was discovered when I opened the bottom three layers.

Inside were only small, unbranded white blister packs of pills. Upon opening them, rows of red, sugar-coated pills came into view. Even before tearing open the inner packaging, a unique, pleasant aroma was already wafting through the air.

(End of this chapter)