Sui Yuesheng, who was usually composed, didn’t even ask Jiang Jingyun if it was a good time to talk. As soon as the call connected, he went straight to the point: “Senior Brother, I need you to contact the Jingpu Police Department. I want to check all the surveillance footage from today in the city, especially near Tao Fengche School.”

At that moment, Jiang Jingyun was in his office holding a meeting with his staff, modifying the content of a proposal. Upon hearing this, he immediately covered the receiver and turned his head to exchange a glance with Yu Hebai, who was beside him.

Yu Hebai subtly nodded in understanding.

Jiang Jingyun released the receiver, brought the phone back to his ear, and said, “Hang on a second.”

He tapped on the table to signal a pause in the meeting, and everyone filed out. Yu Hebai closed the door behind him quietly, blocking the gaze of Jiang Jingyun’s assistant from peering in.

In Jiang Jingyun’s impression, Sui Yuesheng was someone who remained calm and collected, as if everything was under his control, even when faced with a mountain collapsing before him. He rarely witnessed any significant emotional fluctuations from his junior, let alone hear him speak in such an anxious tone.

Once the room was cleared, Jiang Jingyun immediately asked, “What happened? Don’t rush, take a deep breath and calm down. I’ll have Yu Hebai make the call.”

As he spoke, he gave Yu Hebai a look, and the latter nodded and smiled slightly.

Sui Yuesheng followed the advice and took a deep breath, filling his lungs slowly before exhaling. He tried to remind himself to stay calm, but his voice still trembled slightly when he spoke: “Xiao che is missing, and there’s a high probability he’s been kidnapped by Zhao Jiayang.”

The weight of this statement was overwhelming, and Jiang Jingyun was momentarily stunned. After a moment, he muttered a curse under his breath.

“Fine, I’ll call the chief right away. Where are you now? Shall we meet at the police station?”

“I’m at the office, heading out now.” Sui Yuesheng quickened his pace, grabbed his trench coat from the rack, and pushed open the door while putting it on. He glanced at Assistant Zhou, who was jogging to keep up, “Notify the driver; we’re going to the police station.”

---

When the news of Tao Fengche’s disappearance came in, it was just past 5:15 PM. After Sui Yuesheng quickly arranged everything, it was still not yet 5:30.

The driver drove with the intensity of a plane taking off, cutting the time needed by almost half. By the time Sui Yuesheng arrived at the Jingpu Police Station, the clock had just struck six.

He met Yu Hebai at the entrance of the police station. They exchanged brief greetings and immediately entered the largest conference room, where members of the special investigation team, including the chief and criminal investigators, had already gathered.

With the chief and some lawmakers present for such a significant case involving the heir of the Tao family, no one dared to take it lightly. Moreover, Sui Yuesheng and Jiang Jingyun had special requirements for confidentiality and blocking information from the outside. Yu Hebai even brought a confidentiality agreement for all members of the special team to sign. Consequently, many standard investigative methods were off the table.

The only options left were monitoring and signal tracking.

The technical investigation team members, especially a few in the surveillance investigation division, looked troubled, continually glancing at the chief, hoping he would say something to ease the burden of Sui Yuesheng and Jiang Jingyun’s requests.

The chief understood their looks and spoke, but his words were far from what they hoped: “Let’s do as Mr. Sui said. Start by checking around the school; we need all surveillance footage, not just the ones from intersections but also private cameras set up by residents and shops.”

His words settled the matter, and despite the officers’ inner protests, they had no choice but to comply.

“Yes, sir.”

The officers quickly went to work, and the special investigation team sprang into action. At that point, Sui Yuesheng finally slumped back in his chair, weary and closing his eyes.

Yu Hebai, feeling sympathetic, was about to move closer to offer comfort, but Jiang Jingyun gently pulled him back, shaking his head slowly.

“What are you doing?” Yu Hebai frowned, mouthing the words. Jiang Jingyun didn’t speak, but his determination was clear. They held their stance for a moment before Yu Hebai relented and exhaled softly.

Jiang Jingyun reassuringly squeezed his palm.

Fifteen minutes later, the technician in charge of tracking reported back that both phones last exchanged signals near the school, and the SIM cards had been removed from the devices.

That lead had been severed.

Though it was anticipated, when it became reality, everyone felt a wave of dispiritedness, particularly Sui Yuesheng—he pressed his lips together, took a hair tie from his pocket, and gathered his hair back, lightly touching the Desert Eagle at his waist. The presence of the cold weapon finally helped him to cool down his racing thoughts.

Assistant Zhou stepped outside to fetch a cup of warm water and handed it to him. Sui Yuesheng accepted it but couldn’t bring himself to drink, merely dampening his lips before placing the paper cup back on the table.

Just after 11 PM, a call came from the Tao family, reporting they had completely surrounded the production facility. Someone had tried to slip out and was apprehended, and the situation was under control.

Being in the police station, Sui Yuesheng couldn’t say much; he only asked, “No incidents, right?”

“Just a minor issue. There are guns involved, and one group tried to break out while another attempted to sneak away. A fight broke out, resulting in some bloodshed, but no casualties. They’re all being monitored closely now.” The bodyguard on the other end spat on the ground with a laugh.

“Good, thanks for your hard work.” Sui Yuesheng didn’t say anything more and hung up.

At one o’clock in the morning, the conference room was still brightly lit.

Shortly after obtaining the surveillance from the traffic management bureau, several surveillance specialists spotted Tao Fengche’s trace—the surveillance at the school gate clearly captured the moment Tao Fengche got into a car. Everyone perked up, and the technical team immediately began tracking, but soon after, the car went off the grid.

This was expected—George Patton was too conspicuous, and even the most foolish kidnapper wouldn’t drive it around.

But no one anticipated Zhao Jiayang would switch vehicles so many times.

He, or rather his driver, was too familiar with Jingpu and had a strong counter-surveillance capability.

They intentionally chose small roads where municipal camera systems couldn’t capture them, and then changed cars in blind spots. The technical team had to continuously hack into private cameras along the vehicle’s disappearance route, trying to track their movements while the surveillance specialists sifted through vast amounts of footage for any clues.

This challenge was akin to searching for a needle in a haystack.

The once-spotless conference room had transformed entirely, with takeout boxes scattered across the floor, and the polished conference table cluttered with cold black coffee and strong tea. Everyone was on edge, and just then, a ringing broke the silence in the room.

The youngest surveillance specialist jumped, his wrist shaking, causing the video on the screen to skip. He grimaced in frustration and had to start from the beginning.

Though others were startled, none reacted as strongly as he did.

Sui Yuesheng pulled out his phone to take a look; it was an unknown number

He exchanged a glance with Jiang Jingyun and immediately handed the phone to the technical team leader, whose eyes lit up: “Quick, get the equipment!”

Everyone jolted with energy, and the quiet conference room erupted into chaos, bustling like a marketplace.

“The equipment is coming!”

“Adjust the devices and keep quiet! No one make a sound!”

The small phone lay on the table, and everyone looked at it as if it were Prometheus’ stolen fire.

The technical team leader opened his mouth to say something, but Sui Yuesheng interrupted him: “Try to buy time and negotiate with him, but don’t let him know I’m at the police station, right?”

“Yes, yes! And confirm the hostage’s safety. It’s best to ask if you can directly talk to the hostage.”

Sui Yuesheng shook his head, muttering softly, “He won’t kill him.”

It was uncertain if this was a statement or a prayer.

The conference room fell silent for a moment, and Yu Hebai couldn’t hold back any longer, breaking the strange quiet.

He urged anxiously, “Just answer the phone! The equipment is ready, what are you waiting for? If you don’t answer now, it’ll be too late!”

Sui Yuesheng took a deep breath and pressed the answer button.