139: Chapter 138 Mysterious and Unpredictable

Ni Zhen heard Cao Xiao's shout, but instead of retreating, she advanced. Her hands brushed aside a punch from Li Quanshuo, and with a slight tilt of her body to dodge Cheng Xiaodao's kick, she slammed her shoulder toward Cheng Xiaodao's chest from thirty centimeters away.

Cheng Xiaodao had already exerted his full strength into the kick, and it was too late to dodge. Seeing Ni Zhen's shoulder already pressing against his chest, he knew that if this strike landed solidly, he would inevitably cough up blood. Although he had never practiced martial arts, he knew the basics; the Baji Iron Mountain Lean was a killing move. In daily practice, people leaned against walls, trees, or stones; a body of flesh and blood couldn't withstand it. However, when Ni Zhen's shoulder actually hit him, though the force was great, it wasn't as violent as he had imagined. He didn't even feel pain, only a massive force carrying his body backward. His feet left the ground, and he flew a full two meters before landing. He rubbed his chest and found nothing wrong, while Ni Zhen had already pulled back her fist and stood still.

“Thank you for showing mercy, Director Ni!” Cao Xiao stepped forward quickly and cupped his fists to thank Ni Zhen. He broke out in a cold sweat; with Ni Zhen's strength, if she had truly intended to kill, Cheng Xiaodao would have been seriously injured. Fortunately, he had come out to stop it in time, or else his bodyguards would have had to stay in the hospital for a long time.

Ni Zhen said solemnly, “Mr. Cao, I did not give the order to attack just now. This Hu Chengcai has worked at the police station for many years; his roots are deep and he is very domineering. I only took office in Baishui Town last week, and I didn't expect him to dare to act so recklessly. I will report this matter truthfully to the leaders of the Public Security Bureau and will definitely give you an explanation! However, you also need to give us an explanation for directly attacking the police.”

Cao Xiao felt a surge of anger upon hearing this. Anyone else in this situation would have been shot dead long ago. If he didn't have some skill, he would have ended up a corpse today, and his death would have been in vain. Give an explanation? My foot! He immediately said in a stern voice, “We don't need to give anyone an explanation for our actions. Since they wanted my life, they deserve to die even if they all perish! You can report those words truthfully to your superiors!”

“Attacking the police is an objective fact! Since Mr. Cao feels this way, we will wait for the superiors to come and handle it!” Seeing Cao Xiao's firm attitude, Ni Zhen also stood by her point, but she was alone now and had no way to handle the situation.

Screech~

Just then, several sedans sped over and came to a sharp halt outside the gate. Over a dozen people scrambled out of the cars, some disheveled and others even wearing pajamas.

“Director Ni! Why has it turned out like this? Where is Director Hu? Go find Director Hu for me immediately! He can't even handle a small matter, and he's supposed to be a top student from the China Public Security University!”

“Ni Zhen! How are you even acting as director? You didn't even report such a big matter to the town. Do you still want your job? If not, go back to your Guiyang!”

Ni Zhen was about to step forward to greet them when the two leading men began berating her relentlessly. The words she was about to say were stifled, and she felt incredibly annoyed. She immediately replied to the two of them without any politeness, “Mayor Ma, Vice Mayor Zhang, when we received the alarm from the hospital, I already called to notify you, but your phones were off. I called your homes, and your families said you weren't there. May I ask where I was supposed to find you? Which club? Which hotel?”

“Ni Zhen! You slip of a girl, how dare you publicly insult your superiors! You are suspended from this moment on! Get out of here right now!” Mayor Ma was humiliated and enraged by her words. His face turned beet red as he pointed at Ni Zhen and roared.

“A person who merely occupies a position without doing any work doesn't have the final say in suspending me. I've been in Baishui Town for a week and only saw you today. I will truthfully report your dereliction of duty to the superiors!” Ni Zhen countered fearlessly.

“Good, good, good! Your wings have grown quite strong. Then I'll wait and see who ends up in trouble.” Mayor Ma trembled with rage. He swung his hand and turned his head away, only to see Cao Xiao watching the scene with folded arms and a cold gaze. His pent-up fury seemed to find a target. The hand he had just lowered rose again to point at Cao Xiao as he looked at Ni Zhen and said, “I see how capable you are. You can't handle official business, but in the middle of the night, you're here having a tryst with a pretty boy, and you have the nerve to criticize me!”

“You come here and start babbling without caring about official business. Originally, I had no right to mind you, but your mouth is too foul; you shouldn't have dragged me into this. I don't have time to dally with you. Everyone, put your hands on your heads and squat to the side now!” Cao Xiao already had no good feelings toward the people of Baishui Town, and now his impression was even worse. It was one thing for this man to annoy him with the noise, but he even insulted him. He was suddenly filled with rage and didn't have time for their nonsense. He drew his pistol directly, pointed it at the group, and shouted loudly.

At the same time, the four bodyguards beside him also took down the assault rifles from their backs and pointed them at the group, chambering rounds with a synchronized click.

“Everyone, hands on heads and squat down!”

“Who are you people! I am the Mayor of Baishui Town. You are resisting the government! The Armed Police will arrive soon. I advise you to put down your weapons immediately and wait for processing.” Suddenly pointed at by guns, Mayor Ma almost collapsed in fear. He managed to steady himself and took two quick steps back, but feeling it was a loss of face, he immediately stood up straight and rebuked Cao Xiao and the others with an air of righteous indignation.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Shut up! Squat down! And the rest of you!” Cao Xiao raised his pistol and fired three shots into the sky, then approached Mayor Ma, pointing the gun at him and roaring.

“This gentleman...”

“Squat down!” A vice mayor tried to step forward to reason with Cao Xiao, but Cao Xiao gave another explosive shout.

The dozen or so people were scared into silence, seeing that Cao Xiao was serious. But before they could react, a figure blocked the muzzle of Cao Xiao's gun.

“Director Ni, what are you doing?” Cao Xiao looked at Ni Zhen, who had stepped forward, and his tone softened slightly.

“Mr. Cao, don't be agitated. They are civil servants; you can't treat them like criminals. Just let them go to the side and stay quiet. There's no need to use guns.” Ni Zhen's tone held a hint of pleading. She couldn't gauge Cao Xiao's temper. These people were used to being pampered and couldn't handle this kind of humiliation; they would inevitably keep arguing. If Cao Xiao really couldn't help but shoot them, it would be far more serious than attacking the police. Even as soldiers, Cao Xiao and his men would be sent to a military court.

“Phew! Fine! For your sake, I'll let them stay to the side. Anyway, after such a big incident, they won't escape responsibility. They'll be held accountable soon enough.” Cao Xiao exhaled a heavy breath of turbid air, put his gun away, and after scanning the group, spoke calmly to Ni Zhen.

Urgent and dense sirens came from the distance, and before long, a convoy of over ten vehicles appeared on the street. The convoy stopped nearby, and a large number of police and Armed Police quickly approached, completely surrounding Cao Xiao and his group.

Fortunately, these Armed Police and regular police did not take any measures against them. They did not point guns at them, but simply surrounded them without a word.

“Which one is Major Cao Xiao?” A middle-aged policeman with a resolute face came up to Cao Xiao and the others and asked.

“That's me!” Although Cao Xiao was somewhat confused—though he could guess this was the identity arranged for him by the higher-ups, he couldn't figure out why he started with the rank of Major—he couldn't ask the person in front of him, or he would give himself away. So he stepped forward two steps and said calmly.

The middle-aged policeman looked Cao Xiao over with surprise, and his eyebrows twitched slightly. Cao Xiao didn't have the slightest military aura, but the name matched and the person was on the scene, so there was no mistake. Although the middle-aged policeman had doubts, he suppressed them, gave Cao Xiao a military salute, and then said, “Hello! I am Tang Shaolin, Director of the Pan City Public Security Bureau. This is Senior Colonel Tan Fei, detachment leader of the Pan City Armed Police Detachment. We have been entrusted by the higher-ups to handle the accident that just occurred.”

“Hello to you both! You arrived late and missed a good show. Police and killers attacking soldiers together—that's something you only see in movies.” Cao Xiao returned the salute. Both men before him were several ranks higher than him; Tang Shaolin was a Class III Commissioner, equivalent to a Senior Colonel, while Tan Fei held the rank of Senior Colonel. Although they belonged to different branches, one should maintain proper respect when meeting someone of a higher rank. However, at this moment, Cao Xiao didn't see himself as a soldier and didn't care about ranks. Having finally waited for people who could handle the problem, he had a target for his grievances, and his tone was somewhat mocking.

“Killers? Why would there be killers here? Did you both exchange fire just now? Are the people lying on the ground okay?” Tang Shaolin asked with a strange expression.

“Heh, that person was crippled by me. He's on top of a small hill about six hundred meters to the northeast; you can arrange for someone to bring him back. Ten minutes ago, I was negotiating with Director Ni, but Vice Director Hu Chengcai used the excuse of taking a call from a superior to trick Director Ni into a car and lock her in. Then he gave the order to attack, brazenly firing at us while we were defenseless. And interestingly, the first shot was fired by that killer. There are important patients in the hospital who cannot be disturbed, so we had no choice but to knock out these attacking police officers. We used sticks to knock them out!” Cao Xiao recounted the process as if telling a joke.

“Are you saying that Hu Chengcai from Baishui Town is related to that killer?” Tang Shaolin's brow furrowed into a knot as he asked in disbelief.

“I don't know if there's a connection; that's for you to investigate. I've encountered nothing but strange things since coming to Baishui Town, and I don't have enough brain cells to waste. These are all your concerns, including the Xinyuan Mine disaster. If you can't handle it quickly, I won't leave. When the time comes, I'll have to do things my own way, and I won't be responsible for any negative impact caused.” Cao Xiao said forcefully.

“Major Cao, we will give you a reasonable explanation for what just happened. However, the background of the Xinyuan Mine disaster is very complex and cannot be handled overnight. We will first verify whether Mr. Li Dongping should indeed bear the primary responsibility for this mining accident. If it is confirmed that Mr. Li was indeed wronged, we will release him immediately. But as for the rest, it's not something I can handle. Even if it is handled, it will take some time. I hope you can understand this.” Tang Shaolin said sincerely.

“Forget it, I'll negotiate directly with Commander Xu tomorrow! Thank you both for coming to handle this in the middle of the night. I'm in a bad mood and spoke a bit impulsively; I hope you'll forgive me. If there's nothing else, may we leave?” Seeing Tang Shaolin speak this way, Cao Xiao felt a bit bad. He had been unable to control his emotions today and found everyone irritating, but since a dignified leader had shown such an attitude, it would be excessive for him to keep speaking that way.

“Major Cao, there's no need to apologize. This is indeed our problem. Someone has already gone to handle the situation at Pingding Mountain. Director Ni is also a witness; it's fine with her here. Leave this to us, Major Cao, please suit yourself!” Tang Shaolin said politely.

“Then I'll trouble you! we'll rest in the hospital today. If there's anything needed, you can find me directly. Goodbye!” After speaking, Cao Xiao led his bodyguards into the hospital.

Once Cao Xiao entered the hospital, Tan Fei asked Tang Shaolin in confusion, “Director, what exactly is his identity? Why are you so polite to him? Could he be a young master from a big family in the capital?”

“I don't know his specific identity either, but he is definitely not some young master. His superficial position is a Major Staff Officer of the General Logistics Department Headquarters, but he also holds a position in a special department; he's definitely not a young master. I'm not being so polite because of his background, but because this matter has high-level attention, and he is a primary participant. I have to handle it carefully. We're just here to wrap things up. Around noon today, Commander Xu of our Provincial Military Region will accompany a special commissioner from the capital to Baishui Town. We need to clear this matter up before they arrive. The specific details of the Xinyuan Mine disaster also need to be verified. So, we'll be staying in Baishui Town today. We'll rest a bit after handling this early, then head to the Xinyuan Coal Mine.” Tang Shaolin said frankly.

“The Xinyuan Coal Mine is a powder keg right now. I didn't expect it would be up to us to ignite it. If handled poorly, it will backfire. We must obtain sufficient evidence before we can act.” Tan Fei said with a sigh.

“We are only responsible for verification; other matters are not for us to worry about. Besides, it can hardly be called a powder keg now; with high-level attention, it's at most a small spark. Now that we have no misgivings, we can take a good breath and give those people something to remember, letting them know that we Chinese aren't truly afraid of them. If it weren't for the constant lack of solid evidence, I would have acted long ago. At worst, I'd be suspended for a while and move to a different place to work; the leaders would understand me.” Tang Shaolin grew indignant as he spoke.

“However, I heard through the grapevine that this mining disaster at the Xinyuan Coal Mine is truly bizarre. Several miners were so scared they were hospitalized. Could there really be something unclean or some terrifying creature down there? These large foreign enterprises are actually interested in such a small coal mine and have invested heavily in shares. At the time, it even made the surrounding coal enterprises restless, everyone wanting to sell their coal mines to those foreigners. But now it seems there must be something very precious under this coal mine...” Thinking of the Xinyuan Coal Mine, Tan Fei couldn't help but voice his suspicions.

Seeing Tan Fei getting more and more far-fetched, Tang Shaolin waved his hand to interrupt him, saying, “Alright! Stop letting your imagination run wild. Those supernatural things are just rumors made up by people. Let's handle the matters here first. Have someone wake up these local police officers. This is quite embarrassing—over twenty professionally trained police personnel with guns were actually knocked unconscious by a few people in close combat. We'll have to drag them out and train them hard in the future.”