Liu Changshan was startled by the sudden voice and quickly stepped back. “Wait, you’ve got the wrong person, haven’t you? I live downstairs. I’m not this ‘Officer Liu’ you’re talking about.”
But the man—who looked like a knockoff Jason Statham—shook his head like a rattle-drum. “No mistake, absolutely no mistake. You are Officer Liu. Your photo’s right there on the police-community bulletin board in our neighborhood.”
He stepped forward, grabbed Liu Changshan’s hand, and gushed with gratitude. “Officer Liu, I really can’t thank you enough for all you do to keep our community safe…”
Before he could finish, Liu Changshan’s expression darkened, and he forced a stiff smile. “Well, anyway… it’s the middle of the night, time to sleep. The person in 9302 isn’t home anyway, so this was a wasted trip. Let’s leave it at that—I’ll come back when he’s around.”
“Sure thing, Officer Liu! Once he’s back, I’ll let you know. It’s a young guy living there—real easy to talk to,” the Statham-lookalike replied cheerfully.
Hurrying down to another floor with the property staff, Liu Changshan frowned deeply and let out a long sigh.
He’d miscalculated.
He’d assumed the target would be inside the apartment. All they’d have to do was knock, confirm he was home, and then the rest would be straightforward.
But the guy had gone out in the afternoon—which clearly meant he’d been prepared, already knowing the police would come knocking.
And that neighbor basically confirmed it too…
“Officer, is there anything else I can help with?” the property staff member asked.
Liu Changshan shook his head. “No… actually, wait. Call right now and ask—does anyone live in 9303? What’s the name?”
The more he thought about that burly neighbor, the more something felt off.
The guy was way too eager. And none of the other neighbors had woken up—only he had.
Plus, he’d loudly announced Liu Changshan’s identity in the hallway, knowing full well he was a cop.
The property staff member paused, didn’t overthink it, and immediately pulled out his phone to make a call.
A minute later, his face went pale. “Officer—9303 is empty! Nobody lives there!”
“Damn it!”
The moment he heard that, Liu Changshan knew something was wrong.
Clomp, clomp, clomp.
He bounded back up the stairs to the 9th floor, and when he saw the wide-open door of 9302, his heart sank.
He rushed inside, scanned the empty room, and hurried over to the messy bed.
The sheets were still warm—which meant the guy had only just left!
“Officer—the elevator just went down!” the property staffer shouted from outside.
Liu Changshan reacted instantly, pressing the Bluetooth earpiece in his ear. “The target is fleeing! Repeat—the target is fleeing! All units, tighten the perimeter immediately. The target is currently heading down in the elevator!”
As he gave orders, he sprinted toward the elevator bank.
Watching the indicator hit the first floor, he pressed the earpiece again. “Is anyone waiting outside the elevator?”
“Liu, I’m right here by the elevator!” came a voice he knew all too well.
Liu Changshan kept running as he spoke, now heading for the stairwell. “Back up Xiao Zhang immediately! Back him up! The target may be armed!”
Ding-dong.
The elevator arrival chime sounded through his earpiece—but then Xiao Zhang’s voice came through, confused. “Liu… there’s no one in the elevator…”
“Huh?” Liu Changshan froze in his tracks.
How is that possible…? Where’d he go?
Where could he go?
——-
In the darkness, the Statham-lookalike’s figure appeared at the end of the second-floor hallway.
He casually scanned the scene outside, taking in the police officers and tactical unit personnel moving about. Not a trace of panic showed on his face.
Right now, the top priority was to draw all these people away—then he could get the boss out of here.
Of course, getting out himself would be a piece of cake. But he absolutely could not leave the boss here any longer.
After a moment’s thought, he stepped onto the window frame, launched himself off the sill in one smooth motion, and dropped straight into full view of the tactical officers and patrol cops below.
“He’s here!”
“Freeze!”
“Police—don’t move! Move and we’ll shoot!”
Shouts erupted from all directions—but the Statham-lookalike didn’t slow down for a second. He darted straight into the bushes.
Then he sprinted to the entrance of the next building, planted his feet, grabbed the edge of the overhang above the door with both hands, flipped himself up in one motion, and slipped back through a window into the second-floor hallway of that building.
Turning to glance at the bewildered officers and tactical team behind him, he doubled back toward his original position.
He leapt out the window again—and this time, there were no cops or tactical officers in sight.
He bolted toward the next building, moving at incredible speed—and, just for good measure, smashed a car window with a rock.
The piercing shriek of the car alarm instantly drew the attention of the tactical teams and officers scattered around the neighborhood. A swarm of them converged on the sound.
And then the Statham-lookalike did it again—and again. Running, picking up bricks, smashing every car he passed.
Car alarms blared through the entire complex, rousing countless residents. Some threw on jackets and stepped onto their balconies, craning their necks to see what the commotion was all about.
In no time, the whole place descended into chaos—officers and tactical units scrambling in every direction, residents coming downstairs to check on their beloved cars, and the Statham-lookalike still dashing around like he had bottomless stamina…
——–
Room 9303.
Jiang Chuan felt an annoying itch deep in his ear. He reached up and scratched—and when his finger came back with a tiny ball of paper, he jolted awake.
He blinked hard, pulled the paper wad out of his ear, and stared at it in utter confusion.
What the hell…?
The moment the paper came out, a cacophony of blaring car alarms and chaotic noise flooded into his ears.
“What the—it’s not even light out yet. What’s going on?” Jiang Chuan mumbled, yawning as he looked around the room.
But when he saw that the room was completely bare—nothing but raw concrete walls and floor—he froze.
What the hell!
Where’s my stuff?!
How did it end up like this?!
No—this isn’t the place I’m renting. This is somewhere else…
Wait… did someone break into my room while I was asleep and haul me here?
No—that doesn’t add up. They didn’t leave anything behind. If this were a kidnapping, wouldn’t they have tied me up by now?
Besides, it’s not like I have any money.
Or maybe that scammer Zhang Songyang is still bitter about getting outsmarted and decided to get revenge?
No—that doesn’t fit either. The Statham-lookalike is right outside. If anyone suspicious had shown up, there’s no way he’d have let them upstairs.
So what in the world is going on?
Just as Jiang Chuan was racking his brain and coming up empty—
Creak.
The steel door swung open. The Statham-lookalike appeared in the doorway, shut the door quickly behind him, and walked up to Jiang Chuan.
“Boss, the factory’s ready. I think we should head out—right now.”
“Huh?”
